CSV.js

Simple, blazing-fast CSV parsing/encoding in JavaScript. Full RFC 4180 compliance.

Compatible with browsers, AMD, and NodeJS.

Installation

Download csv.min.js and reference to it using your preferred method.

If you use Bower, or npm, install the comma-separated-values package.

Instantiation

Create a CSV instance with var csv = new CSV(data);, where data is the plain-text CSV file you want to work with. You can supply options with the format var csv = new CSV(data, { option: value });.

Options

cast: true to automatically cast numbers and booleans to their JavaScript equivalents. false otherwise. Defaults to true.
line: The string that separates lines from one another. Defaults to '\r\n'.
delimiter: A 1-character-long string that separates values from one another. Defaults to ','.
header: true if the first row of the CSV contains header values, or supply your own array. Defaults to false.
done: A function that is run immediately after all rows have been parsed. Receives the parsed/encoded CSV as its only argument. Defaults to undefined.

You can update an option's value any time after instantiation with csv.set(option, value).

Parsing

By default CSV.js will return an array of arrays.

var data = '\
1850,20,0,1,1017281\r\n\
1850,20,0,2,1003841\r\n\
...
';
new CSV(data).parse();
/*
Returns:
[
  [1850, 20, 0, 1, 1017281],
  [1850, 20, 0, 2, 1003841]
  ...
]
*/

If the CSV's first row is a header, set header to true, and CSV.js will return an array of objects.

var data = '\
year,age,status,sex,population\r\n\
1850,20,0,1,1017281\r\n\
1850,20,0,2,1003841\r\n\
...
';
new CSV(data, { header: true }).parse();
/*
Returns:
[
  { year: 1850, age: 20, status: 0, sex: 1, population: 1017281 },
  { year: 1850, age: 20, status: 0, sex: 2, population: 1003841 }
  ...
]
*/

You may also supply your own header values, if the text does not contain them, by setting header to an array of field values.

var data = '\
1850,20,0,1,1017281\r\n\
1850,20,0,2,1003841\r\n\
...
';
new CSV(data, {
  header: ['year', 'age', 'status', 'sex', 'population']
}).parse();
/*
Returns:
[
  { year: 1850, age: 20, status: 0, sex: 1, population: 1017281 },
  { year: 1850, age: 20, status: 0, sex: 2, population: 1003841 }
  ...
]
*/

Encoding

CSV.js accepts an array of arrays or an array of objects.

var data = [[1850, 20, 0, 1, 1017281], [1850, 20, 0, 2, 1003841]...];
new CSV(data).encode();
/*
Returns:
1850,20,0,1,1017281\r\n\
1850,20,0,2,1003841\r\n\
...
*/

To add headers to an array of arrays, set header to an array of header field values.

var data = [[1850, 20, 0, 1, 1017281], [1850, 20, 0, 2, 1003841]];
new CSV(data, { header: ["year", "age", "status", "sex", "population"] }).encode();
/*
Returns:
"year","age","status","sex","population"\r\n\
1850,20,0,1,1017281\r\n\
1850,20,0,2,1003841\r\n\
*/

To add headers to an array of objects, just set header to true.

var data = [
  { year: 1850, age: 20, status: 0, sex: 1, population: 1017281 },
  { year: 1850, age: 20, status: 0, sex: 2, population: 1003841 }
];
new CSV(data, { header: true }).encode();
/*
Returns:
"year","age","status","sex","population"\r\n\
1850,20,0,1,1017281\r\n\
1850,20,0,2,1003841\r\n\
*/

Streaming

If the dataset that you've provided is to be parsed, calling CSV.prototype.forEach and supplying a function will call your function and supply it with the parsed record immediately after it's been parsed.

var data = '\
1850,20,0,1,1017281\r\n\
1850,20,0,2,1003841\r\n\
...
';
new CSV(data).forEach(function(array) {
  /*
   * do something with the incoming array
   * array example:
   *   [1850, 20, 0, 1, 1017281]
   */
});

Likewise, if you've requested an array of objects, you can still call CSV.prototype.forEach:

var data = '\
year,age,status,sex,population\r\n\
1850,20,0,1,1017281\r\n\
1850,20,0,2,1003841\r\n\
...
';
new CSV(data, { header: true }).forEach(function(object) {
  /*
   * do something with the incoming object
   * object example:
   *   { year: 1850, age: 20, status: 0, sex: 1, population: 1017281 }
   */
});

If you're dataset is to be encoded, CSV.prototype.forEach will call your function and supply the CSV-encoded line immediately after the line has been encoded:

var data = [[1850, 20, 0, 1, 1017281], [1850, 20, 0, 2, 1003841]];
new CSV(data).forEach(function(line) {
  /*
   * do something with the incoming line
   * line example:
   *   "1850,20,0,1,1017281\r\n\""
   */
});

Special Thanks

Benjamin Gruenbaum for helping improve performance.

tmgriffiths/CSV.js