Format guide
What is TSV?
TSV file format is a tab-separated values table — like CSV but with tabs as delimiters, created by De facto / IANA text/tab-separated-values (1993+). TSV avoids comma collisions inside fields and is common in spreadsheet paste workflows and some bioinformatics/data tools. Convert to CSV when a destination insists on commas.
TSV format specifications
- Full name
- TSV file format
- Kind
- structured data
- File extension
- .tsv, .tab
- MIME type
- text/tab-separated-values
- Developer / standard
- De facto / IANA text/tab-separated-values · 1993+
- Compression
- none
- Quality model
- Lossless / not lossy
- Container
- No / single bitstream typical
- Common codecs
- —
- Technical sources
- —
- Transparency
- Not supported
- Animation
- No (still / non-animated typical use)
- Typical size
- Tiny compared with XLSX for the same rows
- Browser support
- Download and open in Sheets/Excel; convert in-browser with Format Convertly
- Compatibility
- Imports cleanly into Excel, Sheets, and scripts that expect tabs; some casual tools still assume CSV by default
TSV compression & quality
TSV compression: none. Lossless (or non-destructive packaging) keeps reconstructable data — size savings come from packing efficiency, not throwing detail away. Typical size profile: Tiny compared with XLSX for the same rows. Quality note: Lossless text rows; formatting is not preserved
Quality: Lossless text rows; formatting is not preserved
Typical size: Tiny compared with XLSX for the same rows
Transparency & animation
TSV does not support an alpha channel. Convert to PNG, WebP, AVIF, or SVG when you need transparent backgrounds.
TSV is a still-media or non-animated format in typical use. Use GIF, APNG, video, or animated WebP when you need motion.
TSV metadata
Usually none beyond encoding/BOM — structure is the content. Comments allowed in YAML/TOML.
Best use cases for TSV
- Pasting tables from spreadsheets
- Data pipelines that prefer tabs
- Avoiding comma-heavy European number locales
- Simple text tables in repos
When to avoid TSV
- Multi-sheet workbooks
- Preserving Excel formatting
- Nested JSON-like data
- Binary content
Advantages
- Fewer comma conflicts
- Plain text
- Spreadsheet-friendly
- Easy for scripts
Disadvantages
- Tabs can be invisible when editing
- Less ubiquitous than CSV in casual exports
- One table only
- Encoding issues still apply
Compatibility
Imports cleanly into Excel, Sheets, and scripts that expect tabs; some casual tools still assume CSV by default
Browsers: Download and open in Sheets/Excel; convert in-browser with Format Convertly
Software support
- Excel
- Google Sheets
- LibreOffice
- pandas
- R
Device support
- Any device with a text editor or spreadsheet app
- Modern desktops
- Phones and tablets with compatible apps
How to open TSV
Open TSV in Excel or Google Sheets via the text import wizard (choose Tab delimiter), or view it in a code editor with visible whitespace enabled.
How to convert TSV
Convert TSV↔CSV in Format Convertly’s browser tools for delimiter swaps without uploading spreadsheets or customer data.
Popular TSV conversions
Convert to TSV
Incoming conversions strengthen the TSV cluster — e.g. JPG → TSV, PNG → TSV.
TSV comparison guides
Compare TSV with related formats to pick the right container for quality, size, and compatibility.
Best format guides featuring TSV
Decision pages that cite TSV — the next hop after a vs comparison.
TSV how-to guides
Related formats
TSV tools
Tools extend the format graph beyond one-off conversion — compression, metadata, and utilities for real workflows.
TSV FAQ
What is a TSV file?
TSV is a tab-separated values table — like CSV but with tabs as delimiters. TSV avoids comma collisions inside fields and is common in spreadsheet paste workflows and some bioinformatics/data tools. Convert to CSV when a destination insists on commas.
Is TSV lossy or lossless?
TSV is typically lossless or non-destructive in common use (none).
Does TSV support transparency?
TSV does not support an alpha channel. Convert to PNG, WebP, AVIF, or SVG when you need transparent backgrounds.
How do I open a TSV file?
Open TSV in Excel or Google Sheets via the text import wizard (choose Tab delimiter), or view it in a code editor with visible whitespace enabled.
How do I convert TSV privately?
Convert TSV↔CSV in Format Convertly’s browser tools for delimiter swaps without uploading spreadsheets or customer data. Format Convertly keeps processing in your browser so files are not uploaded to a conversion server.
Are my TSV files uploaded on Format Convertly?
No. TSV conversion runs in your browser. Files are not sent to Format Convertly servers for processing.