Microsoft Excel has extensive solutions to every query. What do you think about opening up foreign files with Excel?

If you see the source file restricts the data, Excel will switch to set the data in .xlsx format. With Excel, you can import data using a text file in two ways. You can either open a file in Excel or you can import data with an Excel wizard. The two most common formats of text files are .txt and .csv.

So how to open a text file in Excel?

Excel is not responsible to manage everything because you cannot import any .txt file. You have to make setups in the file to smooth down the procedure. With a .csv file, it would be easier as the software adds a delimiter by default with the help of a comma.

How to Open a Text File in Excel?

Opening a .txt file in Excel is not a big thing. For this, you have to import a delimited text file in Excel. Open the text file just as you open any other file.

Close the file you were about to import and then open a blank Excel workbook.

Click on the File tab and select Open. Press CTRL + O to Open the task. You can find this option on the Quick Access Toolbar as well.

If your current file list in Figure B has a text file, click on it and you are done.

Figure B

If there is no file present in the list, click the This PC icon and browse through the folders until you find it. To choose the text file formats in Figure C, you can use the File Type drop-down menu. It will update the file list that contains text files.

Figure C

Now, double-click on the text file or else click on it to open. With Excel import wizard, you will have a good experience in data interpretation. In Figure D, you don’t need edits as the delimited file is being imported and there is no header row.

Click Next.

Figure D

In Figure E, you can see the tab character is set as the delimiter. At the bottom end, you can have a look at the preview pane. Now, click Finish. More changes can be made while importing data.

Figure E

In Figure F, Excel has the text file opened because the data is delimited. Figure F

How to Open a Text File in Excel with Power Query?

Let’s have a look at the following steps:

• Open the Data tab.
• Click on the File menu and choose Text/CSV.

• Click on the Load button. It will load the data in the sheet.

• Your data is in the sheet now.

Power Query is the best option when it comes to importing data from the text file. This approach is dynamic that’s why it is useful. To update data in the text file, you just have to click on the refresh button.

All done!

To Sum Up:

In this post, you have learned how to open a text file in Excel without being in lengthy procedures. Power query as already mentioned is the finest option to use for importing data. You can try all the above methods without any hesitation. Continue learning new skills and keep spreading the word.