# CSV Export With Formatting **URL:** \ **Category:** General Discussion\ **Created:** [January 14, 2025, 9:14pm UTC](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/t/csv-export-with-formatting/100894 "2025-01-14T21:14:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Jason\_Platt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Jason\_Platt](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/u/Jason_Platt)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2025, 9:14pm UTC](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/t/csv-export-with-formatting/100894/1 "2025-01-14T21:14:27Z")
is it even possible to format a csv with some minor formatting? I have at table with some Boolean values that I would like to show as a checkbox. As well as date formatting. ---
**Author:** ![Kevin.Herron](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/inductiveautomation/user_avatar/forum.inductiveautomation.com/kevin.herron/32/7259_2.png) [@Kevin.Herron](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/u/Kevin.Herron)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2025, 9:18pm UTC](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/t/csv-export-with-formatting/100894/2 "2025-01-14T21:18:39Z")
CSV is just a text format, so no, you can't force a checkbox to appear. That would be a rendering choice of whatever software you opened in the CSV file in. Dates are also just text. You can re-format the date however you like by modifying the dataset you export. ---
**Author:** ![pturmel](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/inductiveautomation/user_avatar/forum.inductiveautomation.com/pturmel/32/3295_2.png) [@pturmel](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/u/pturmel)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2025, 9:19pm UTC](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/t/csv-export-with-formatting/100894/3 "2025-01-14T21:19:52Z")
If you want to do such things, you really need to use a format-capable file type, like Excel. The Apache POI libraries that come with Ignition make nearly anything possible. (Lots of examples here on the forum.) ---
**Author:** ![Kevin.Herron](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/inductiveautomation/user_avatar/forum.inductiveautomation.com/kevin.herron/32/7259_2.png) [@Kevin.Herron](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/u/Kevin.Herron)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2025, 9:22pm UTC](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/t/csv-export-with-formatting/100894/4 "2025-01-14T21:22:15Z")
Actually I guess you could stuff emojis into the text file 😳 ```python ☑️, ✅, 🌴 ``` (don't do this) ---
**Author:** ![pturmel](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/inductiveautomation/user_avatar/forum.inductiveautomation.com/pturmel/32/3295_2.png) [@pturmel](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/u/pturmel)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2025, 9:26pm UTC](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/t/csv-export-with-formatting/100894/5 "2025-01-14T21:26:34Z")
> [@Kevin.Herron](#): > > emojis Ewww! ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_Laubach](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/inductiveautomation/user_avatar/forum.inductiveautomation.com/steve_laubach/32/60900_2.png) [@Steve\_Laubach](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/u/Steve_Laubach)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2025, 9:27pm UTC](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/t/csv-export-with-formatting/100894/6 "2025-01-14T21:27:57Z")
I thought emojis were just for use in passwords. ---
**Author:** ![RedNomad](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/inductiveautomation/user_avatar/forum.inductiveautomation.com/rednomad/32/71055_2.png) [@RedNomad](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/u/RedNomad)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2025, 7:53am UTC](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/t/csv-export-with-formatting/100894/7 "2025-01-15T07:53:43Z")
I think I never saw .csv with formatting... Try to csv2xlsx, It's always worked for me ---
**Author:** ![Jason\_Platt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Jason\_Platt](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/u/Jason_Platt)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2025, 1:20pm UTC](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/t/csv-export-with-formatting/100894/8 "2025-01-15T13:20:45Z")
yea going to do excel, just easier. The question remains. Does anyone know a way to format a checkbox in the export? trying to build this ![image](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/inductiveautomation/original/3X/3/d/3dd2db412c16914d64de91c0a00aa7a05053d4bf.png) but it looks like this ![image](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/inductiveautomation/original/3X/a/6/a67d359e7f191eb3a9de3b60b5f00c62812746bf.png) ---
**Author:** ![pturmel](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/inductiveautomation/user_avatar/forum.inductiveautomation.com/pturmel/32/3295_2.png) [@pturmel](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/u/pturmel)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2025, 1:23pm UTC](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/t/csv-export-with-formatting/100894/9 "2025-01-15T13:23:36Z")
Write a script to read a sample Excel file (with Apache POI) that has checkboxes formatted as you desired. Programmatically examine the details of those cells. Write your Apache POI exporter to construct those cells the same way. ---
**Author:** ![Transistor](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/inductiveautomation/user_avatar/forum.inductiveautomation.com/transistor/32/3380_2.png) [@Transistor](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/u/Transistor)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2025, 8:35pm UTC](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/t/csv-export-with-formatting/100894/10 "2025-01-15T20:35:54Z")
> [@RedNomad](#): > > I think I never saw .csv with formatting... CSV doesn't support formatting. > [@RedNomad](#): > > Try to csv2xlsx, It's always worked for me If you are referring to [GitHub - ferkulat/csv2xls: csv2xls (csv to xls) is a command line utility which converts csv files into one (or more if maximum rows are exceeded) Excel(TM) file(s).](https://github.com/ferkulat/csv2xls), the project page explicitly states, > ### Limitations > > - produces only Excel(TM) 97/2000/XP/2003 files > - **no cell formatting, just plain text** This won't convert a boolean true / false to a checkbox, one of the OP's requirements. Did you mean something else? ---
**Author:** ![Jason\_Platt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5f8ce5/32.png) [@Jason\_Platt](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/u/Jason_Platt)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2025, 8:42pm UTC](https://forum.inductiveautomation.com/t/csv-export-with-formatting/100894/11 "2025-01-15T20:42:43Z")
yea sorry, not doing a csv, its gonna be an xlsx.