Split text to columns

Row Zero makes it easy to split text to columns using the built-in tool. Here's how:

  1. Select the column you'd like to split

  2. Go to Data in the header menu and select Split text to columns. split text to columns in a spreadsheet

  3. Select your separator, verify the preview looks good, and then click Split values. CSV split text to columns in a spreadsheet

The text in your column will now be split into multiple columns according to the separator. Note you can set a Custom separator, so you can split text to columns in a myriad of ways.

Common Use Cases for Text to Columns

  1. Parsing unparsed CSV data
    • Splitting text to columns is especially useful if you have a CSV file that imports but fails to parse correctly and has all of the data is in one column as shown in the example above.
  2. Splitting full names
    • From: Bill Smith
    • To: Bill | Smith
  3. Breaking apart addresses
    • From: 123 Main St, Boston, MA
    • To: 123 Main St | Boston | MA
  4. Separating dates and times:
    • From: 2025-03-25 14:30
    • To: 2025-03-25 | 14:30
  5. Unpacking values with custom separators:
    • From: ken@rowzero.io
    • To: ken | rowzero.io

There are a number of related parsing functions that may be useful in these situations including TEXTBEFORE, TEXTAFTER, LEFT, and RIGHT. If you need to do the reverse and concatenate a list of values into a single string with a specified delimiter, use TEXTJOIN or CONCAT.