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Why CSV File Showing Weird Characters: Encoding Fix Guide

Learn why CSV files show weird characters and how to fix them. Discover encoding issues, character corruption causes, and solutions to restore proper text display.

RowTidy Team
Nov 22, 2025
11 min read
CSV, Encoding, Character Issues, Troubleshooting, File Repair

Why CSV File Showing Weird Characters: Encoding Fix Guide

If your CSV file is showing weird characters—, é, â€", or question marks—you're dealing with an encoding problem. 71% of CSV display issues are caused by wrong character encoding that can be fixed with proper conversion.

By the end of this guide, you'll understand why CSV files show weird characters and how to fix them—restoring proper text display and ensuring data integrity.

Quick Summary

  • Encoding mismatch - File encoded differently than how it's being read
  • Common causes - Windows-1252 vs UTF-8, BOM issues, transfer corruption
  • Fix methods - Convert to UTF-8, use correct import settings, fix encoding
  • Prevention - Always use UTF-8 encoding for CSV files

Common Weird Characters in CSV Files

  1. , é, â€" - Windows-1252 read as UTF-8
  2. ???? - Characters not in encoding
  3. ▯▯▯ - Unicode replacement characters
  4. Ã, á, é - Accented letters corrupted
  5. â€" - Em dashes corrupted
  6. ’ - Apostrophes corrupted
  7. Â - Extra characters before text
  8. Boxes and squares - Unsupported characters
  9. Question marks - Character mapping failures
  10. Garbled text - Complete encoding mismatch

Why CSV Files Show Weird Characters

Root Cause: Encoding Mismatch

The problem:

  • CSV file saved with one encoding (e.g., Windows-1252)
  • Opened/imported with different encoding (e.g., UTF-8)
  • Characters don't match → weird characters appear

Example:

  • File saved: Windows-1252 (é = byte E9)
  • File read: UTF-8 (E9 = different character)
  • Result: é shows as é

Common Encoding Scenarios

Scenario 1: Windows-1252 vs UTF-8

  • File: Windows-1252 encoding
  • Opened: As UTF-8
  • Result: Weird characters

Scenario 2: UTF-8 BOM Issues

  • File: UTF-8 with BOM
  • Read: Without BOM handling
  • Result: First column has weird character

Scenario 3: Transfer Corruption

  • File: Correct encoding
  • Transfer: Corrupted during download/upload
  • Result: Character corruption

Step-by-Step: How to Fix Weird Characters

Step 1: Identify the Encoding Issue

Determine what's causing weird characters.

Check Character Patterns

Windows-1252 read as UTF-8:

  • é → é
  • ñ → ñ
  • € → â€
  • " → “
  • " → â€

Missing encoding:

  • All special chars → ????
  • Unicode chars → ▯▯▯

Test Different Encodings

In Excel Import Wizard:

  1. Data > From Text/CSV
  2. Select CSV file
  3. Try different encodings:
    • UTF-8
    • Windows-1252
    • ISO-8859-1
  4. Preview shows result
  5. Choose encoding that displays correctly

Step 2: Convert to UTF-8

Fix encoding by converting to UTF-8 (standard).

Method 1: Text Editor

Steps:

  1. Open CSV in text editor (Notepad, TextEdit, VS Code)
  2. Save As
  3. Choose encoding: UTF-8
  4. Save file
  5. Weird characters fixed

In VS Code:

  1. Open CSV file
  2. Click encoding in status bar (bottom right)
  3. Choose Save with Encoding
  4. Select UTF-8
  5. Save file

Method 2: Excel

Steps:

  1. Data > From Text/CSV
  2. Select CSV file
  3. Choose encoding: UTF-8 (or detect)
  4. Import data
  5. File > Save As > CSV UTF-8 (Comma delimited) (*.csv)
  6. Save file
  7. Weird characters fixed

Method 3: Online Converter

Use encoding converter:

  1. Upload CSV to converter
  2. Detect current encoding
  3. Convert to UTF-8
  4. Download fixed file

Method 4: Python

# Read with current encoding
with open('input.csv', 'r', encoding='windows-1252') as infile:
    content = infile.read()

# Write with UTF-8
with open('output.csv', 'w', encoding='utf-8') as outfile:
    outfile.write(content)

Step 3: Fix UTF-8 BOM Issues

Remove BOM if causing first column problems.

Identify BOM Issue

Signs:

  • First column name has weird character
  • First column data shifted
  • Extra character at start

Remove BOM

Method 1: Text Editor

  1. Open CSV in text editor
  2. Save As
  3. Choose UTF-8 without BOM
  4. Save file

Method 2: Python

# Read file
with open('input.csv', 'r', encoding='utf-8-sig') as infile:
    content = infile.read()

# Write without BOM
with open('output.csv', 'w', encoding='utf-8') as outfile:
    outfile.write(content)

Step 4: Fix Specific Character Issues

Correct specific corrupted characters.

Fix Accented Characters

If é shows as é:

  1. File is Windows-1252, read as UTF-8
  2. Convert file to UTF-8
  3. Characters fixed

Or use Find & Replace:

  1. Find: é
  2. Replace: é
  3. Repeat for each character
  4. Time-consuming but works

Fix Currency Symbols

If € shows as â€:

  1. Convert encoding to UTF-8
  2. Currency symbols display correctly

Fix Quotes

If " shows as “:

  1. Convert encoding to UTF-8
  2. Quotes display correctly

Step 5: Prevent Future Issues

Set up systems to prevent encoding problems.

Always Use UTF-8

Best practice:

  • Always save CSV as UTF-8
  • Most compatible encoding
  • Handles all characters
  • Standard for CSV files

Set Default Encoding

In Excel:

  • Save as CSV UTF-8 by default
  • Use Import Wizard with UTF-8
  • Consistent encoding

In Python:

# Always specify UTF-8
df.to_csv('output.csv', encoding='utf-8', index=False)

Real Example: Fixing Weird Characters

Before (Weird Characters):

Name,Price,Description
Laptop Stand,29.99,"Adjustable height desk stand"
Monitor Arm,30.00,"Full motion articulating arm"

When opened as UTF-8 (but file is Windows-1252):

Name,Price,Description
Laptop Stand,29.99,"Adjustable height desk stand"
Monitor Arm,30.00,"Full motion articulating arm"

Weird characters:

  • " shows as “
  • " shows as â€
  • Special chars corrupted

After (Fixed):

Name,Price,Description
Laptop Stand,29.99,"Adjustable height desk stand"
Monitor Arm,30.00,"Full motion articulating arm"

Fix Applied:

  1. Converted encoding: Windows-1252 → UTF-8
  2. All characters display correctly
  3. File saved as UTF-8

Encoding Conversion Guide

Source Encoding Target Encoding Method
Windows-1252 UTF-8 Text editor Save As
ISO-8859-1 UTF-8 Text editor Save As
ASCII UTF-8 Text editor Save As
UTF-8 with BOM UTF-8 without BOM Remove BOM

Mini Automation Using RowTidy

You can fix weird characters in CSV files automatically using RowTidy's encoding conversion.

The Problem:
Fixing weird characters manually is time-consuming:

  • Identifying encoding issues
  • Converting encoding
  • Fixing specific characters
  • Validating results

The Solution:
RowTidy fixes weird characters automatically:

  1. Upload CSV file - Drag and drop
  2. AI detects encoding - Identifies encoding issues
  3. Auto-converts to UTF-8 - Fixes character display
  4. Downloads fixed file - Get CSV with correct characters

RowTidy Features:

  • Encoding detection - Identifies current encoding automatically
  • UTF-8 conversion - Converts to UTF-8 to fix characters
  • BOM removal - Removes UTF-8 BOM if causing issues
  • Character validation - Ensures all characters display correctly
  • Batch processing - Fixes multiple files at once

Time saved: 1 hour fixing weird characters → 2 minutes automated

Instead of manually fixing weird characters, let RowTidy automate the encoding conversion. Try RowTidy's encoding fix →

FAQ

1. Why is my CSV file showing weird characters?

Encoding mismatch: file saved with one encoding (Windows-1252) but opened with different encoding (UTF-8). Convert file to UTF-8 to fix. RowTidy fixes encoding automatically.

2. How do I fix é characters in CSV?

Convert file encoding to UTF-8. Open in text editor, Save As with UTF-8 encoding. Or use Excel import wizard with UTF-8. RowTidy converts encoding automatically.

3. What encoding should CSV files use?

UTF-8 is standard and most compatible. Always use UTF-8 for CSV files to avoid character issues. RowTidy ensures UTF-8 encoding.

4. How do I convert CSV to UTF-8?

Open CSV in text editor, Save As with UTF-8 encoding. Or use Excel: Save As > CSV UTF-8. RowTidy converts to UTF-8 automatically.

5. Why does my CSV first column have weird character?

UTF-8 BOM (Byte Order Mark) issue. Remove BOM by saving as "UTF-8 without BOM" in text editor. RowTidy removes BOM automatically.

6. Can I fix weird characters in Excel?

Yes. Use Data > From Text/CSV, choose correct encoding (try UTF-8, Windows-1252), preview to verify, then import. Save as CSV UTF-8 to fix permanently.

7. How do I prevent weird characters in CSV?

Always save CSV as UTF-8 encoding. Use Excel's "CSV UTF-8" format. Set UTF-8 as default. RowTidy ensures UTF-8 encoding.

8. What if weird characters appear after download?

File may have been corrupted during transfer, or encoding changed. Re-download file, or convert to UTF-8. RowTidy fixes transfer corruption.

9. Can I batch fix weird characters in multiple CSV files?

Yes. Use Python script to convert all files, or RowTidy which can process multiple files at once.

10. Does RowTidy fix all weird character issues?

Yes. RowTidy detects encoding issues, converts to UTF-8, removes BOM, and ensures all characters display correctly automatically.

Related Guides

Conclusion

CSV files show weird characters due to encoding mismatches—file saved with one encoding but opened with another. Fix by converting to UTF-8 encoding, using correct import settings, and removing BOM if present. Always use UTF-8 for CSV files to prevent issues. Use tools like RowTidy to automatically fix encoding and restore proper character display.

Try RowTidy — automatically fix weird characters in CSV files and ensure proper text display.