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Excel to MySQL import file with utf8mb4 and InnoDB

Upload the Excel file, choose MySQL, set the table name and column types, then convert and download the .sql file. Import it with the mysql client, phpMyAdmin or MySQL Workbench.

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Demo converts up to 100 rows, once.

Sheet

Delimiter

Encoding

JSON shape

Minify JSON

SQL dialect

Table name

Wrap in a transaction

Dates

Row element

Orientation

Workbook password (if protected)

Trim spaces in every cell Remove duplicate rows Drop empty columns Stack all sheets into one table

MySQL has its own import options, such as LOAD DATA INFILE and the Workbench import wizard, but both trip over encodings, date formats and decimal separators that come from Excel. A prepared SQL dump avoids those issues because types and escaping are decided before the database sees anything.

XlsConverter writes MySQL syntax specifically: backtick identifiers, utf8mb4 tables and MySQL date literals. For other databases, see Excel to PostgreSQL or the general Excel to SQL converter.

How to convert Excel to MySQL in three steps

1Upload your Excel workbook.
2Choose MySQL, the table name, engine and column types.
3Convert, download the .sql file and run it against your database.

Why MySQL imports from Excel break on charset and decimals

MySQL tables created with the older utf8 charset store only three bytes per character, so emoji and some Asian characters fail or are cut off. We write CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 on the table and SET NAMES utf8mb4 at the top of the dump, which makes the import independent of the client default. Accented names from Excel arrive intact.

Decimal values are another frequent problem. A workbook made in Germany shows 1.234,50, and a naive export writes that text into a DECIMAL column, which MySQL either rejects or truncates in non strict mode. We read the stored numeric value from the cell, not the displayed text, and write 1234.50. DECIMAL precision and scale are calculated from the actual data.

Dates must be YYYY-MM-DD for DATE and YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS for DATETIME. Excel serial numbers are converted, and empty date cells become NULL instead of the zero date 0000-00-00 that strict mode refuses. For very large sheets, a CSV export loaded with LOAD DATA can be faster, and Excel to SQLite is handy for a local copy.

Options for Excel to MySQL

Table name and engine: Name the table and choose InnoDB, with DROP TABLE IF EXISTS if you want a clean reload.
Charset: utf8mb4 with a utf8mb4_unicode_ci collation, so emoji and all scripts are stored correctly.
Primary key: Use an existing ID column or add an AUTO_INCREMENT id column.
Column types: Inferred VARCHAR, INT, BIGINT, DECIMAL, DATE, DATETIME or TEXT, each adjustable.
Insert mode: Plain INSERT, INSERT IGNORE, or INSERT with ON DUPLICATE KEY UPDATE for upserts.

Run it automatically

Recurring loads, such as a weekly stock sheet or a monthly sales report, can be turned into SQL automatically. A pipeline picks up the workbook from an inbox, Drive or S3, writes the MySQL dump with your saved mapping and upsert mode, and sends it to SFTP or a webhook. The API lets your own job fetch the dump and run it.

Excel to MySQL questions

How do I import an Excel file into MySQL?

Convert the workbook to a MySQL SQL dump, then run it with the mysql command line client, phpMyAdmin or MySQL Workbench.

Does the dump work with MariaDB?

Yes. The MySQL output uses syntax that MariaDB accepts, including utf8mb4 and ON DUPLICATE KEY UPDATE.

How do I avoid duplicate rows when reimporting?

Set a primary key column and choose ON DUPLICATE KEY UPDATE, so existing rows are updated instead of duplicated.

Why do accented characters turn into question marks in MySQL?

The table or connection uses a charset that cannot store them. The dump sets utf8mb4 on both, which stores every Unicode character.

Can I try the Excel to MySQL converter?

A one-time demo converts up to 100 rows and lets you download the SQL after signup. Full imports need a plan from 24 USD per month billed yearly.

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Excel to SQL Excel to PostgreSQL Excel to SQLite XLSX to SQL CSV to SQL

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