How to Save and Open Shopify CSV Files in UTF-8 and Fix Encoding Issues
Shopify only accepts CSV files encoded in UTF-8, for both imports and exports. To save a CSV as UTF-8, choose CSV UTF-8 when saving in Excel, download the sheet as CSV from Google Sheets, or pick Unicode (UTF-8) as the text encoding in Numbers or LibreOffice.
Encoding decides how characters such as é, ñ, €, curly quotes and non-Latin scripts are stored. A file saved in the wrong encoding can fail to import or fill your products with garbled symbols, so it’s worth getting this step right before every upload.
Why Shopify Requires UTF-8 CSV Files
UTF-8 is a text encoding that can represent almost every character and symbol in a consistent way. Shopify uses it as the only accepted format for CSV imports and exports, so any file you upload must be saved in UTF-8.
When a file uses another encoding, special characters may turn into question marks, the replacement symbol � or strings such as é. Some files fail outright with errors like “Illegal quoting on line.”
Shopify warns that it can’t recover data corrupted by the wrong encoding. That makes it important to confirm the encoding every time you save, especially for product titles, descriptions and customer names with accents or non-English text.
How to Save a CSV as UTF-8 for Shopify
Most spreadsheet programs can save in UTF-8, but the option isn’t always the default. Use the steps for the program you work in.
Google Sheets
Google Sheets is the simplest option, because its CSV downloads are saved in UTF-8. To open a Shopify CSV, create a blank spreadsheet and go to File > Import, then upload the file and choose your import options.
When you’re done editing, go to File > Download > Comma-separated values (.csv, current sheet). The file is saved to your Downloads folder, ready to import into Shopify.
Microsoft Excel
Excel offers several CSV formats, and only one of them is UTF-8. Follow these steps:
- Go to File > Save As, or Save a Copy in some versions.
- Open the file type list.
- Choose CSV UTF-8 (Comma delimited) (*.csv).
- Click Save and confirm if Excel warns that some features may be lost.
The plain CSV (Comma delimited) option doesn’t use UTF-8, so special characters can break. Older versions of Excel may not include the CSV UTF-8 option, in which case open the file in Google Sheets and download it from there.
Apple Numbers
In Numbers, go to File > Export To > CSV. Expand the advanced options, set Text Encoding to Unicode (UTF-8) and click Next to save the file.
LibreOffice Calc
In LibreOffice Calc, go to File > Save As and choose Text CSV (.csv) as the file type. Select Edit filter settings, set the character set to Unicode (UTF-8), keep the comma as the field delimiter and save.
Text editors
Use a text editor only when a spreadsheet program can’t open the file, for example because of formatting errors. Editors such as Visual Studio Code and Sublime Text show the current encoding and let you save the file as UTF-8.
When editing CSVs as plain text, separate column headers with commas, put each record on its own line and wrap values that contain commas, such as multiple tags, in straight quotation marks. Save the file with UTF-8 selected in the editor’s encoding menu before uploading.
How to Open a Shopify CSV Without Garbled Characters
Shopify exports are already UTF-8, but double-clicking a CSV to open it in Excel can still display accented or non-Latin characters incorrectly. Importing the file with the encoding set explicitly avoids this.
- Open a blank workbook in Excel.
- Go to the Data tab and choose From Text/CSV, or From Text in older versions.
- Select your Shopify CSV.
- Set File Origin to 65001: Unicode (UTF-8) and the delimiter to Comma.
- Check that the preview shows the characters correctly, then load the data.
This matters for stores with customers or products in other languages, such as Chinese shipping addresses in an order export. Opening the file in Google Sheets through File > Import is an easy alternative.
Fix Common UTF-8 and Encoding Errors
Most encoding problems show up as specific errors or symbols. This table explains what each one usually means:
| What you see | Likely cause | How to fix it |
|---|---|---|
| “Illegal quoting on line” | The file isn’t UTF-8, or it has missing or stray quotes | Save as UTF-8, then check quotes on the line named in the error |
| “Missing or stray quote on line” | Curly quotes from a spreadsheet, Word or a PDF | Replace curly quotes with straight quotes, then save again |
| Symbols like � or é in product text | The file was saved in another encoding | Re-save as UTF-8 from the original file and import again |
| Characters look wrong only in Excel | Excel opened the file without UTF-8 | Use Data > From Text/CSV with UTF-8, or open it in Google Sheets |
| “Invalid CSV header: missing headers” | Headers don’t match, or the first line has extra spaces | Match Shopify’s header row and remove trailing spaces |
Copying text from Word documents or supplier PDFs is a common source of curly quotes and odd characters. Run a find and replace for curly quotation marks before saving, then export the file as UTF-8.
Check a File Before Importing
A quick check before a large import saves time fixing products afterward. Open the saved CSV in a text editor or Google Sheets and look for a few product titles or descriptions that contain special characters.
Then import a small test file with a handful of products. If the characters look right in your admin and storefront, import the rest of the catalog.
Special characters don’t always survive a trip between different spreadsheet programs. If you switch tools mid-project, check these characters again after reimporting.
Fix Products Already Imported With Bad Characters
If garbled text already reached your store, you can fix it with a corrected file. Go back to your original, correctly encoded data, save it as UTF-8 and import it with Overwrite products with matching handles selected.
Avoid exporting the broken products and reimporting them as they are, because the garbled characters are now stored in your product data. For a few products, editing the affected text by hand in the admin is often faster.
Tips for Working With Shopify CSV Files
A consistent workflow prevents most encoding problems before they start. Keep these habits in mind:
- Stick to one spreadsheet program. Fewer conversions mean fewer chances for characters to change.
- Save as UTF-8 every time. Some programs fall back to their default CSV format on the next save.
- Keep the original file. A clean copy lets you restore data if an import goes wrong.
- Format codes as text. Set SKU and barcode columns to text so leading zeros stay intact.
- Stay under the size limit. Product, inventory and customer CSVs can’t be larger than 15 MB.
If you manage product data across Shopify, WooCommerce or Wix, Bulkflow supports bulk import, export and updates to existing product records with field mapping. That can help when you regularly move product data between files and stores and want fewer manual steps.
Conclusion
Saving every file as Shopify CSV UTF-8 keeps product names, descriptions and customer details readable from export to import. Choosing the right save option in your spreadsheet program and testing a small batch first prevents most encoding errors before they reach your store. We hope this guide helps you handle Shopify CSV UTF-8 files with confidence. To import and update product data in bulk, you can explore Bulkflow.
