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Why does my CSV download open in Safari?

This guide explains why CSV files open onscreen in Safari and shows you how to save the file so you can open it in a spreadsheet app such as Excel or Numbers.

Written by Costa Bontioti

📝 Overview

When you download a CSV file in Safari, the browser displays the file's contents onscreen in a new tab rather than saving it to your computer.
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This guide shows you how to save the file from Safari so you can open it in a spreadsheet app, along with a quicker alternative if you would rather skip the extra steps.
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🛠️ How To Save Your CSV File in Safari

Because Safari opens the CSV onscreen, you will need to save the page as a file before you can open it in a spreadsheet app. Follow the steps below.

  1. Right-click (or control-click) anywhere on the page and select "Save Page As".
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  2. In the prompt that appears, change "Format" to "Page Source". You will notice the file extension in the file name change to .csv.
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  3. Highlight the file name to rename it if you would like, then choose where you want to save the file.
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  4. Click Save. You will now be able to open the file in Excel or Numbers.

Safari right-click menu showing the Save Page As option

Safari save dialog with Format set to Page Source and the file name ready to rename

💡 Prefer to skip the conversion? Download the file in a different browser, such as Chrome, and it will save straight to your computer as a spreadsheet file.

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