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How to Fix Data Import Errors: Import Troubleshooting Guide

Learn how to fix data import errors effectively. Discover methods to diagnose, resolve, and prevent import errors in Excel and other tools.

RowTidy Team
Nov 24, 2025
12 min read
Data Import, Import Errors, Troubleshooting, Excel, CSV

How to Fix Data Import Errors: Import Troubleshooting Guide

If you're getting data import errors—files won't import, data is wrong, or imports fail—you need systematic troubleshooting to identify and fix the problem. 73% of import errors are caused by common issues that can be fixed quickly.

By the end of this guide, you'll know how to fix data import errors effectively—diagnosing problems, applying solutions, and preventing future import issues.

Quick Summary

  • Diagnose errors - Identify what's causing import to fail
  • Fix common issues - Resolve encoding, delimiter, format problems
  • Use correct settings - Apply proper import configuration
  • Prevent errors - Set up data for successful imports

Common Import Errors

  1. Encoding errors - Wrong character encoding causing garbled text
  2. Delimiter errors - Wrong delimiter causing column misalignment
  3. Quote errors - Unescaped quotes breaking row structure
  4. Line break errors - Wrong line breaks causing row problems
  5. Data type errors - Wrong data types causing conversion failures
  6. Format errors - Inconsistent formats causing import issues
  7. Size errors - File too large for import
  8. Structure errors - Broken file structure preventing import
  9. Header errors - Headers in wrong format or location
  10. Permission errors - File access or permission issues

Step-by-Step: How to Fix Import Errors

Step 1: Diagnose the Error

Understand what's causing the import to fail.

Read Error Message

Common error messages:

  • "Unterminated quoted field"
  • "Too many fields"
  • "Invalid character encoding"
  • "File format not supported"
  • "Data type conversion error"

Check Error Details

Note:

  • Error message text
  • Which row/column failed
  • What data caused error
  • Error code (if any)

Step 2: Fix Encoding Errors

Resolve character encoding issues.

Identify Encoding Problem

Signs:

  • Weird characters: , é, â€"
  • Question marks: ????
  • Garbled text

Fix Encoding

In Excel Import Wizard:

  1. Data > From Text/CSV
  2. Select file
  3. Try different encodings:
    • UTF-8 (most common)
    • Windows-1252
    • ISO-8859-1
  4. Preview to verify
  5. Choose encoding that works

Or convert file:

  1. Open in text editor
  2. Save As with UTF-8 encoding
  3. Re-import

Step 3: Fix Delimiter Errors

Resolve column alignment issues.

Identify Delimiter Problem

Signs:

  • Data in wrong columns
  • All data in one column
  • Extra columns created

Fix Delimiter

In Excel Import Wizard:

  1. Data > From Text/CSV
  2. Select file
  3. Try different delimiters:
    • Comma (,)
    • Semicolon (;)
    • Tab
    • Custom
  4. Preview to verify alignment
  5. Choose delimiter that aligns columns

Or fix file:

  1. Open in text editor
  2. Find and replace delimiters
  3. Standardize to one delimiter
  4. Re-import

Step 4: Fix Quote Errors

Resolve quote escaping issues.

Identify Quote Problem

Signs:

  • "Unterminated quoted field" error
  • Rows split incorrectly
  • Data in wrong rows

Fix Quotes

In text editor:

  1. Find unescaped quotes
  2. Replace " with "" (double quotes)
  3. Save file
  4. Re-import

Or use Excel:

  1. Import with text qualifier set to "
  2. Excel handles quotes automatically
  3. Re-export if needed

Step 5: Fix Line Break Errors

Resolve row structure issues.

Identify Line Break Problem

Signs:

  • Rows merged together
  • Data in wrong rows
  • Wrong row count

Fix Line Breaks

In text editor:

  1. Find and replace:
    • \r\n → \n (or vice versa)
  2. Standardize line breaks
  3. Save file
  4. Re-import

Or use Excel:

  1. Import file
  2. Excel normalizes line breaks
  3. Re-export if needed

Step 6: Fix Data Type Errors

Resolve conversion failures.

Identify Data Type Problem

Signs:

  • "Data type conversion error"
  • Numbers imported as text
  • Dates imported as text

Fix Data Types

In Excel Import Wizard:

  1. Preview data
  2. Click column headers
  3. Set data types:
    • Text - For IDs, codes
    • Number - For numeric data
    • Date - For date data
  4. Import with correct types

Or fix after import:

  1. Use Text to Columns
  2. Choose correct type
  3. Convert data

Step 7: Fix Format Errors

Resolve format inconsistency issues.

Identify Format Problem

Signs:

  • Mixed date formats
  • Mixed number formats
  • Import fails on specific rows

Fix Formats

Before import:

  1. Standardize formats in source file
  2. Convert to consistent format
  3. Re-import

After import:

  1. Standardize formats
  2. Apply consistent formatting
  3. Validate data

Step 8: Fix Size Errors

Handle large file issues.

Identify Size Problem

Signs:

  • "File too large" error
  • Import times out
  • Excel crashes

Fix Size Issues

Options:

  1. Split file into smaller chunks
  2. Use Power Query (handles larger files)
  3. Use specialized tools
  4. Increase system resources

Step 9: Fix Structure Errors

Resolve file structure problems.

Identify Structure Problem

Signs:

  • "Invalid file format" error
  • File won't open
  • Structure broken

Fix Structure

Check file:

  1. Open in text editor
  2. Verify CSV structure
  3. Fix broken structure
  4. Re-import

Common fixes:

  • Fix unescaped quotes
  • Standardize delimiters
  • Fix line breaks
  • Repair headers

Step 10: Fix Header Errors

Resolve header format issues.

Identify Header Problem

Signs:

  • Headers not recognized
  • Headers in wrong row
  • Multiple header rows

Fix Headers

In Excel Import Wizard:

  1. Preview data
  2. Check header row
  3. Adjust if needed
  4. Use "Use First Row as Headers"

Or fix file:

  1. Move headers to row 1
  2. Remove duplicate headers
  3. Standardize header format
  4. Re-import

Real Example: Fixing Import Errors

Error:

"Unterminated quoted field" error

  • Import fails at row 15
  • Only 14 rows imported (file has 100)

Diagnosis:

Checked row 15:

  • Has unescaped quote: "Product with "quote" inside"
  • Breaks CSV structure
  • Causes import to fail

Fix:

Escaped quote:

  • Changed to: "Product with ""quote"" inside"
  • Re-imported
  • All 100 rows imported successfully

Import Error Fix Checklist

Use this checklist when fixing import errors:

  • Error message read and understood
  • Encoding checked and fixed
  • Delimiter checked and fixed
  • Quotes checked and fixed
  • Line breaks checked and fixed
  • Data types set correctly
  • Formats standardized
  • File size handled
  • Structure verified
  • Headers corrected
  • Import tested successfully

Mini Automation Using RowTidy

You can prevent and fix data import errors automatically using RowTidy.

The Problem:
Fixing data import errors manually is time-consuming:

  • Diagnosing errors
  • Fixing encoding, delimiters, quotes
  • Testing imports
  • Repeating for each error

The Solution:
RowTidy fixes import errors automatically:

  1. Upload file - Drag and drop
  2. AI detects issues - Finds encoding, delimiter, quote, structure problems
  3. Auto-fixes errors - Standardizes encoding, delimiters, fixes quotes
  4. Downloads fixed file - Get file ready for import
  5. Imports successfully - No more import errors

RowTidy Features:

  • Encoding conversion - Converts to UTF-8 automatically
  • Delimiter standardization - Fixes delimiter issues
  • Quote repair - Fixes quote escaping automatically
  • Line break fixing - Standardizes line breaks
  • Structure repair - Fixes broken structure
  • Format standardization - Prepares data for import
  • Import validation - Ensures file imports successfully

Time saved: 2 hours fixing import errors → 2 minutes automated

Instead of manually fixing data import errors, let RowTidy prepare files for successful import. Try RowTidy's import error fixing →

FAQ

1. How do I fix data import errors?

Diagnose error (read error message), fix encoding (convert to UTF-8), fix delimiter (standardize to comma), fix quotes (escape properly), fix line breaks (standardize), set data types correctly, test import. RowTidy fixes automatically.

2. What's the most common import error?

Encoding errors (weird characters) and delimiter errors (wrong columns) are most common. Both easily fixed. RowTidy fixes both automatically.

3. How do I fix "Unterminated quoted field" error?

Escape quotes properly: replace " with "" within quoted cells. Or import to Excel and re-export (Excel handles quotes automatically). RowTidy fixes quotes automatically.

4. How do I fix encoding errors?

Use Import Wizard, try different encodings (UTF-8, Windows-1252), preview to verify, choose encoding that displays correctly. Or convert file to UTF-8 first. RowTidy converts to UTF-8 automatically.

5. How do I fix delimiter errors?

Use Import Wizard, try different delimiters (comma, semicolon, tab), preview to verify alignment, choose delimiter that aligns columns. RowTidy standardizes delimiters.

6. Can I prevent import errors?

Yes. Use UTF-8 encoding, comma delimiter, proper quote escaping, standard line breaks, consistent formats. Or use RowTidy to prepare files before import.

7. How do I fix data type conversion errors?

Set data types correctly during import: Text for IDs/codes, Number for numeric data, Date for date data. Or fix after import using Text to Columns. RowTidy handles data types.

8. What if file is too large to import?

Split file into smaller chunks, use Power Query (handles larger files), use specialized tools, or increase system resources. RowTidy handles large files.

9. Can RowTidy fix all import errors?

RowTidy fixes most common import errors: encoding, delimiters, quotes, line breaks, structure, formats. For severe corruption, may need specialized recovery tools first.

10. How long does it take to fix import errors?

Depends on issues: simple encoding fix = 5 minutes, multiple issues = 30 minutes, complex structure repair = 1+ hour. RowTidy fixes in minutes.

Related Guides

Conclusion

Fixing data import errors requires systematic troubleshooting: diagnose error (read message), fix encoding (UTF-8), fix delimiter (standardize), fix quotes (escape), fix line breaks (standardize), set data types correctly, and test import. Use Excel Import Wizard, text editors, or tools like RowTidy to automatically fix import errors. Proper error resolution ensures successful data imports.

Try RowTidy — automatically fix data import errors and get files that import successfully every time.