CSV broken row fixer: repair rows with too many or too few columns
In short: Paste or upload the CSV. Rows with more cells than the header, usually from an unquoted comma in a company name, have the extra cells joined back into one value, short rows are padded, and a list says what was done to each row. Limit: A merge is a guess when more than one column fits; the list marks those rows.
Paste or upload the CSV with its header row. Rows with more cells than the header, usually from a comma inside a company name, have the extra cells joined back into one value, found by requiring the email column to still hold an address. Rows with too few cells are padded. Every repair is listed so you can check it before importing.
Price: this tool is free. Checking a whole email list is from $9/mo, and the first 100 checks are free with Google, no card. Check your list free nowSee pricing
Sample result
Northwind, Inc. is joined back into one Company cell, and the short row gets an empty Title.
- Rows repaired
- 3 rows
- Too many cells
- 2
- Too few cells
- 1
What this means for you
Every row now has as many cells as the header, so the import stops failing on column counts.
- Extra cells joined back
- Short rows padded
- Every repair listed
- Pick the column yourself
- CSV
- Import
- Rows
By SimpleVerifier Team · Last updated · Runs in your browser; nothing you paste is sent to us
Fixed rows can still hold dead addresses.
- Copy the Email column from the file you just fixed, or use the check button under the result.
- Upload or paste it at /verify. Every address gets a live mailbox check, and the first 100 email checks are free with a Google sign-in, no card.
How do I fix CSV rows that break an import?
- Paste the CSV with the header row first, or upload the file.
- Read the counts of rows with too many and too few cells and the list of repairs.
- If the tool guessed the wrong column for the extra commas, choose the right one from the list and it is redone.
- Download the fixed CSV and try the import again.
Example
- You enter
- A CSV with the header
Name,Company,Email,Titleand three data rows: one with an unquoted comma inNorthwind, Inc., one with only three cells, and one withFabrikam, Ltd., UK. - You get
- The extra cells are joined back into the Company column (
Northwind, Inc.andFabrikam, Ltd., UK), the short row gets an empty Title, and a list says what was done to each of the three rows. - Limits
- Runs in your browser; nothing is uploaded. Files up to 25 MB.
Why do some rows have extra columns?
A value that contains a comma has to be wrapped in double quotes, as RFC 4180 says: "Fields containing line breaks (CRLF), double quotes, and commas should be enclosed in double-quotes." An export that skips the quotes turns "Northwind, Inc." into two cells and pushes every cell after it one place to the right. The same RFC says each line should have the same number of fields, which is why importers refuse such files.
How does the tool decide where to merge?
For a row with extra cells it tries each place the extra cells could have been joined and keeps the one where the email column still holds an address. If several places fit, a column named like Company is preferred; if none can be told apart, the row is marked as a guess. Rows with too few cells get empty cells added at the end. Pick the column yourself when the guess is wrong.
What else breaks a CSV import?
A stray double quote can swallow the lines after it into one cell; the tool counts cells that contain line breaks so you can spot that. Garbled letters and hidden characters are a different problem, handled by the CSV encoding fixer. To rename or reorder columns first, use the CSV column editor.
Who uses this tool, and for what?
- Sales ops
- Get a scraped or exported list through an import that rejects rows with the wrong number of cells.
- SDR teams
- Fix a lead file from a data vendor before it goes into the sequencer.
- Agencies
- Clean a client's spreadsheet export without opening it in a text editor.
What can’t this tool tell you?
- A merge is a guess when more than one column fits; the list marks those rows.
- It can't tell whether a short row lost its cells from the middle or the end; it pads at the end.
- A file with a stray quote may need to be fixed at the source first.
- Only the first sheet or pasted text is read.
Common questions
- Does it change the values in good rows?
- No. Rows that already match the header are left as they are.
- What if the extra comma isn't in a company name?
- Choose the column that holds the extra commas from the list, such as Address or Title, and every broken row is redone with it.
- Can it fix semicolon or tab files?
- It reads the separator from the first line. The downloaded file is a standard comma CSV.
- Why is a repaired row marked as a guess?
- Because more than one column could have held the extra comma, or there is no email column to anchor on. Check those rows by eye.
- Is my file uploaded to SimpleVerifier?
- No. The file is read and repaired in your browser.
Sources
A tidy list can still be full of dead addresses.
Extracting, deduplicating and syntax checks all work on the text of an address. None of them can tell whether the mailbox exists. Only the server that hosts it can answer that, through an SMTP check, and that is what the paid product does.
- Upload the cleaned file as it is: CSVs up to 100,000 rows
- A real SMTP mailbox check on every row, with catch-all detection
- Small list? Starter at $9/mo covers 2,500 emails a month, cancel anytime
Plans from $9 a month, cancel anytime, no contract. Sign in with Google and your first 100 email checks are free, no card. The free tools stay free either way.