Convert CSV to KML
This converter turns a CSV with latitude and longitude columns or a WKT column into a KML file for Google Earth, Google My Maps or QGIS, with one placemark per row and the other columns kept as placemark data. The CSV is read in your browser and is not uploaded. You choose which column becomes the placemark name. Addresses are not geocoded, so the file needs coordinates.
Did a file not convert correctly? E-mail [email protected], ideally with a small sample file, and it will be fixed.
Key facts
- Input: CSV (.csv). Output: KML (.kml).
- Your files are not uploaded: the work is done in your browser, on your own device.
- File size: no fixed limit; very large files are limited by your device's memory.
- Needs a current browser (Chrome, Edge, Firefox or Safari) on a computer, tablet or phone; nothing to install.
- Free to use, with no sign-up.
CSV to KML: why convert
A list of shops, wells, survey points or customers kept in Excel is easier to understand on a map, and Google Earth reads KML. This converter finds the coordinate columns on its own when they have usual names such as lat, latitude, lon, lng, longitude, x or y, or uses a column of WKT text such as POINT (12.57 55.68), which also allows lines and polygons. It copes with the CSV variants Excel writes in different countries: commas or semicolons, decimal points or decimal commas, UTF-8 or the older Windows encoding, and degrees, minutes and seconds. Each row becomes a placemark named after the column you choose, and every other column is shown in its balloon. The file is read and the KML written in your browser with GDAL, the library QGIS uses.
How to convert CSV to KML
- Drop your .csv file in the box, or click to choose it.
- Check the coordinate columns and choose the column to use for placemark names.
- Click Convert to KML and open the file in Google Earth or import it into My Maps.
What changes when you convert
How the coordinate columns are found
A column whose values look like WKT is used as the geometry first. Otherwise the longitude or X column is the first whose name starts with lon, lng or long, or is x or easting, and the latitude or Y column the first that starts with lat, or is y or northing. The summary shows which columns were used, and you can choose others. A point in Copenhagen with latitude and longitude swapped lands in the Arabian Sea, so a look at the map before converting is worth it.
Choosing the placemark name
Google Earth labels each placemark with its name. Automatic uses a column called Name if there is one, then a text column with name, title or label in it, then the first text column. You can pick any other column, or No names. The other columns appear as a data table in the balloon, and Google Earth shows every value as text.
Semicolons, decimal commas and encoding
In Germany, France, Denmark and many other countries, Excel saves CSV files with semicolons between columns and a comma as the decimal mark, so 55,6813 means 55.6813. Both are detected, and an Excel "sep=" first line is honored. A file that is not valid UTF-8 was usually saved by Excel in the Windows code page of the computer, such as Windows-1252 or Shift_JIS; the converter picks the one the text reads most naturally in, so names with accents come out right in Google Earth.
Rows without coordinates
A row with an empty or unreadable coordinate is kept as a placemark without a location, so its data is not lost, but Google Earth and My Maps cannot show it on the map. The page tells you how many rows that affects; fix them in the spreadsheet and convert again if they matter. Addresses are not turned into coordinates.
Coordinates in metres
KML coordinates are always longitude and latitude on WGS84. When the values are clearly not degrees, for example UTM eastings and northings, the page asks for the EPSG code, such as EPSG:25832 or EPSG:32633, and reprojects the points to WGS84 before writing the KML.
About the formats
CSV
CSV (comma-separated values) is a plain-text table that opens in Excel, Google Sheets and every database. It has no geometry type of its own: locations are stored either as two coordinate columns, such as latitude and longitude, or as a column of WKT text.
- Points fit in two columns (X and Y, or longitude and latitude); lines and polygons need a WKT column.
- The coordinate system is not stored in the file, so note it separately.
- There is no standard for the separator: Excel uses a comma or a semicolon depending on the language settings.
- Every value is text; whether 0800 is a number or a postcode is up to the program reading it.
KML
KML (Keyhole Markup Language) is the XML format behind Google Earth and Google My Maps, and an OGC standard since 2008. Besides geometry it can hold styles, icons, folders and descriptions in HTML.
- Always WGS84 longitude, latitude and optional altitude.
- Folders group placemarks; each folder can become its own layer when converting.
- Styles (colors, line widths, icons) are specific to KML and Google Earth.
Frequently asked questions
Is my CSV uploaded?
No. The file is read and converted by your own browser, so customer lists and other private addresses stay on your computer.
Can I import the KML into Google My Maps?
Yes. In My Maps, add a layer, click Import and choose the KML. My Maps uses the placemark name as the title and shows the other columns in the details.
Can the CSV contain lines and polygons?
Yes, in a WKT column. Each row holds one geometry, for example LINESTRING (12.56 55.67, 12.57 55.68) or a POLYGON. Point coordinates in two columns can only give points.
Can I color the placemarks?
Not from the CSV. Points get Google Earth's standard pushpin and lines are red. In Google Earth Pro, right-click the folder, open Properties and change the style, then save the file again.
Does it work with Google Sheets?
Yes. In Google Sheets choose File, Download, Comma-separated values, and drop that file here.