A CSV (Comma-Separated Values) file is a simple text format used to store tabular data, such as spreadsheets or databases. Each line in the file corresponds to a row in the table, and the values (or columns) within each row are separated by commas. It is one of the most common and widely supported formats for data exchange.

CSV files are plain text, making them lightweight, easy to create, and readable by virtually any software, including:

• Spreadsheet applications (Microsoft Excel, Google Sheets)
• Text editors (Notepad, TextEdit)
• Programming languages (Python, PHP, JavaScript)
• Database management systems

A typical CSV structure looks like this:
Name,Email,Signup_Date
John Doe,john@example.com,2023-10-15
Jane Smith,jane@domain.com,2023-10-16 The first row often contains headers describing each column.

Key Advantages:

• Universality: Supported by countless applications and platforms.
• Simplicity: Easy for humans to read and for machines to parse.
• Size: Much smaller than equivalent Excel (.xlsx) files.

Common Uses in Web Hosting: CSV files are frequently used for:

• Importing/exporting mailing lists for email campaigns.
• Migrating product catalogs or user data to e-commerce platforms.
• Backing up database content (like WordPress posts or user tables).
• Bulk updating settings or entries through control panels (cPanel, Plesk).

Important Note: While commas are standard separators, sometimes other characters like semicolons (;) or tabs are used, especially in regions where commas are decimal separators. Always verify the delimiter before importing data to avoid errors.

To create or edit a CSV, you can use any text editor and save the file with the .csv extension. For more complex tasks, spreadsheet software provides a user-friendly interface to manage the data before exporting it as a CSV.