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Why UpLead Requires CSV Files in UTF-8 and How to Convert Them
Why UpLead Requires CSV Files in UTF-8 and How to Convert Them

This guide will help you understand why UTF-8 is necessary and how to convert your CSV files to this format.

Uplead Support avatar
Written by Uplead Support
Updated over 2 weeks ago

In this article, you’ll find:


Why UTF-8 Encoding is Required

UpLead requires UTF-8 for all CSV imports and exports. This encoding standard is essential because it:

  • Preserves special characters and symbols without distortion.

  • Ensures compatibility across various operating systems and software.

  • Prevents upload failures caused by unsupported character sets.

  • Ensure that the correct data is provided as no conversions are done on the characters

All CSV files downloaded from UpLead are automatically formatted in UTF-8, including:

✔️ Contact or company verification files

✔️ Enrichment data files

⚠️ If your CSV file is not UTF-8 encoded, it may result in corrupted data or failed uploads.


Key Considerations

💡 Best Practice: Always verify that your CSV file is in UTF-8 format before uploading it to UpLead.

⚠️ Common Mistake: Using other encoding formats like ANSI or ISO-8859-1 may cause missing or garbled characters in your data.


How to Convert a CSV File to UTF-8

Step-by-Step Process

Microsoft Excel

Step 1: Open the CSV file in Excel.

Step 2: Click File > Save As.

Step 3: Choose a location to save the file.

Step 4: In the Save as type dropdown, select CSV UTF-8 (Comma delimited) (.csv).

Step 5: Click Save.

Google Sheets

Step 1: Open Google Sheets, then go to File > Import.

Step 2: Choose Upload, select your CSV file, and click Import data.

Step 3: Once the file is open, go to File > Download and select Comma-separated values (.csv, current sheet).


FAQs

Q: What happens if I upload a non-UTF-8 CSV file?

A: The file will not upload correctly, and the enrichment will fail.

Q: Does UpLead automatically convert files to UTF-8?

A: No, users must ensure their files are UTF-8 encoded before uploading.

Q: How do I check if my CSV file is in UTF-8?

A: Ensure you followed the steps from the How to Convert a CSV File to UTF-8 chapter of this article.


Next Steps

Still need help? Contact UpLead Support via chat or email.

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