Guide
How to find and replace across CSV columns
Clean up typos, standardize values, and fix formatting issues in bulk.
Start with search
Before replacing, search to understand the scope. How many instances exist? Are there variations? Search helps you plan the replacement strategy.
- Count occurrences before replacing
- Search for variations and typos
- Note which columns contain matches
Be specific
Broad replacements cause collateral damage. Replacing 'CA' might affect California, Canada, and 'CA' in the middle of words. Use exact match when possible.
- Match whole words when available
- Consider case sensitivity
- Test on a subset first
Quick CTA
Search your CSV instantly
Use Readable CSV's search to find values across all columns before cleaning.
Try searchUse regex for patterns
Regular expressions handle complex patterns. Fix phone number formats, standardize spacing, or clean up codes that follow a pattern.
- \d matches any digit
- \s matches whitespace
- ^ and $ anchor to start and end
Verify the results
After replacing, search again for both the old and new values. The old value should have zero matches. The new value should match your expected count.
- Old value count should be zero
- New value count should match expectation
- Scan visually to confirm no side effects
Key takeaway
Search before you replace. Specificity prevents accidents.