What I can do to import CSV without Garbled characters

Ash037 

There are several approaches you can try to import a CSV file into Excel 2016 on Windows 11 without encountering garbled characters:

1. Use the Text Import Wizard:

• Open the CSV file using any text editor like Notepad or Wordpad.
• Save the file with a new name and ensure the encoding is set to UTF-8. You can usually find the encoding option under "File" -> "Save As" and then selecting "More options" in the dialog box.
• Open Excel 2016.
• Go to the "Data" tab.
• Click "From Text/CSV".
• Select the saved file with UTF-8 encoding.
• In the "Text Import Wizard" window:
  • Choose "Delimited" as the file origin.
  • Select the comma (,) as the delimiter (assuming your CSV uses commas between data points).
  • Click "Next" and review the data preview. If the characters look correct, click "Finish".
  • If the data still appears garbled, try different encoding options in the "File origin" section (e.g., Windows-1252, UTF-16).

2. Use Notepad++ (Free software):

• Download and install the free software "Notepad++" from https://notepad-plus-plus.org/downloads/.
• Open the CSV file in Notepad++.
• Go to "Encoding" -> "Character Encoding".
• Select "Encode in UTF-8" or "Convert to UTF-8" depending on the available options.
• Save the file with a new name.
• Open the saved file in Excel 2016. It should display the data correctly.

3. Change System Locale (Temporary workaround):

Note: This is a temporary solution and might not be ideal for your specific situation. Use it with caution and consider other methods if possible.

• Open the Windows Control Panel.
• Go to "Clock, Language, and Region" and then "Region".
• Click the "Administrative" tab.
• Click the "Change system locale" button.
• Check the box "Beta: Use Unicode UTF-8 for worldwide language support".
• Click "OK" and restart your computer.
• Open your CSV file in Excel 2016. The characters might appear correctly now. However, after you're finished working with the file, switch the system locale back to its original setting to avoid potential issues with other applications.

Remember to try these methods one at a time and see which one resolves the garbled character issue in your specific case. Additionally, always back up your original CSV file before making any modifications.