CSV Encoding Inspector

Inspect character encoding (UTF-8, UTF-16, ASCII) and check for Byte Order Mark (BOM) signatures.

How It Works & Processing Standards

Inspect character encoding (UTF-8, UTF-16, ASCII) and check for Byte Order Mark (BOM) signatures.

Current Limits

  • Desktop max file size: 50MB
  • Mobile max file size: 20MB

CSV Encoding Inspector is a 100% free, browser-based online utility. All calculations and file conversions run locally inside your browser (Local-First) without sending data to remote servers, keeping your documents and inputs strictly private.

How to Use CSV Encoding Inspector

  1. 1
    Upload CSVSelect or drop your CSV file into the inspector.
  2. 2
    AnalyzeInspect byte signatures, character ranges, and BOM markers.
  3. 3
    View DiagnosisSee detected encoding (UTF-8, UTF-8 with BOM, UTF-16, ASCII).

Examples

UTF-8 with BOM Check
Input: [File containing EF BB BF header bytes]
Result: Encoding: UTF-8 with BOM (Excel compatible, prevents Korean/CJK corruption)

Common Use Cases

  • Fixing broken Korean, Japanese, or accented characters when opening CSV files in Microsoft Excel
  • Auditing export files before uploading to database bulk copy utilities
  • Detecting unwanted BOM characters that break programmatic parsers

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Why does Excel show garbled characters for UTF-8 CSVs?

Excel often defaults to ANSI/system codepages unless a UTF-8 BOM (Byte Order Mark) is present at the beginning of the file.

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