The .xls filename extension is a native binary file format associated with the closed source spreadsheet application Microsoft Office Excel. First introduced in 1987 with the release of Excel 2.x, the file format acts as the container for storing spreadsheet data such as work sheets, charts, and macros. Prior to Microsoft Office Excel 2007, the xls binary format was the default standard for the Microsoft Office Excel until the later adoption of the Open Document standard .xlsx. Documents to be saved in the .xls format are saved as Excel 97, 2003 documents.
The comma-separated values file format or CSV for short is a common cross platform file format used for information exchange between disparate devices, systems, and software. Mainstream usage of the format begun in 2005, with RFC 4180 forming the basis of its specification. The format's strongest feature is the ability to store relational tabular data in a plain text format which can be imported and/or exported to any compatible application. Because of this feature and the relatively small file size, CSV is commonly used for exporting and importing data from populated databases or spreadsheet files that use a proprietary format, to other systems and applications that utilize different file formats and architectures. The csv format is limited though in its inability to represent records only from a relational data source. It does not support object oriented or hierarchical databases.
FreeFileConvert uses tuned encoding for XLS to CSV conversions, preserving clarity while trimming file size. Finished audio streams instantly across phones, tablets, desktops, and modern browsers without extra tweaks.
Upload XLS files from desktop, tablet, or cloud storage, queue multiple jobs, and let the converter finish autonomously. Return whenever convenient to download synchronized CSV results on any device you rely on.
Process up to 5 files sized 1000 MB per batch without splitting queues manually. Mixed-format uploads convert together, producing consistent CSV audio with dependable progress tracking.
.xls was extended to the Microsoft Office XML format spreadsheetML which was later succeeded by the Office Open XML specification. The format stores data as fixed sized streams and sub streams which contain cell records with actual user input cell data, formulas, cell properties, along with meta data about the file including information such as document author, date of creation, worksheet names etc. The main streams in the xls format are Workbook stream, Globals sub stream, and the worksheet sub stream.
The UTF-8 character collection set is the most commonly used collection set for the storage of data records in the csv file format. It is worth noting however that csv is not limited to a single character set and indeed can function with other character sets such as EBCDIC or Shift JIS. Each record in a csv file is typically a human readable plain text line delimited by a line break command. Field separations on a single csv record can be achieved using a comma, tab, or semicolon but every record should have the same number of field separations.
Upload your document file in the XLS format from your device, Dropbox, or Google Drive.
Select CSV as the output format and click Convert. Adjust optional settings if needed.
Download the converted document file. Each file stays available for up to 5 downloads.