Comma Separator
Turn a column into a comma-separated list, or a list back into a column.
Runs in your browser. Nothing you enter is uploaded.
How to use Comma Separator
- Paste a column, one item per line, such as a column copied from Excel or Google Sheets.
- Leave Column to comma list selected to get "a, b, c", or choose Comma list to column to put each item of a list on its own line.
- Under Options, pick the separator, add quotes for SQL, wrap the list in ( ) or [ ], or remove duplicates.
- Copy the result, or download it as a .txt file.
Examples
A column turned into a list
- Convert: Column to comma list
Paris London Berlin Madrid Rome
Paris, London, Berlin, Madrid, Rome
Each line becomes one item.
A list for an SQL IN clause
- Convert: Column to comma list
- Separator: Comma
- Quotes: Single 'a'
- Wrap in: ( )
- Remove duplicates: On
ana@example.com ben@example.com chloe@example.com ben@example.com
('ana@example.com','ben@example.com','chloe@example.com') Ready to paste after WHERE email IN. The empty line and the second ben@example.com are left out.
A list split back into a column
- Convert: Comma list to column
- Remove quotes around items: On
red, green, "blue, light", yellow
red green blue, light yellow
The quoted item keeps its comma, and its quotes are removed.
How it works
Column to comma list reads one item per line and joins the items into one line. Comma list to column does the reverse: it splits a list at its commas and puts each item on its own line.
| Your text | Choose | Result |
|---|---|---|
| red, green and blue on three lines | Column to comma list | red, green, blue |
| red, green, blue | Comma list to column | red, green and blue on three lines |
Under Options you can change the separator to a plain comma, a semicolon, a pipe, a tab, a space or your own text. For a column, you can also put each item in single or double quotes and wrap the whole list in ( ) or [ ].
Good to know
- Spreadsheets: a column copied from Excel or Google Sheets is one item per line. A copied row is cells separated by tabs, and it’s read as a list of items too.
- Items with commas inside: when splitting, an item in quotes stays whole: “Smith, John” is one item. The quotes are removed unless you turn off Remove quotes around items.
- Other separators: when a list has no commas but has semicolons, tabs or pipes, it’s split at those, and the tool says so. To split at spaces, choose Space.
- Quotes inside items are doubled, so O’Brien in single quotes becomes ‘O’‘Brien’, the way SQL and CSV expect it.
- Empty lines and spaces: blank items are skipped, and spaces at the start and end of each item are removed.
- Duplicates: Remove duplicates keeps the first copy of each item. Capital letters count, so Apple and apple are different items.
Nothing you paste is uploaded. The tool runs in your browser.
Questions
How do I convert a column to a comma-separated list in Excel?
In Excel 2019 or 365, use =TEXTJOIN(", ",TRUE,A1:A100). TRUE skips empty cells. In Google Sheets, =TEXTJOIN(", ",TRUE,A1:A100) works too. In older Excel, paste the column here instead.
How do I split a comma-separated list into rows in Excel?
In Excel 365, =TEXTSPLIT(A1,,",") puts each item on its own row. In older Excel, use Data → Text to Columns with Comma as the delimiter, then copy the cells and use Paste Special → Transpose. In Google Sheets, use =TRANSPOSE(SPLIT(A1,",")).
How do I make a comma-separated list for SQL?
Paste the column, then under Options set Quotes to Single and Wrap in to ( ). The result looks like ('a','b','c') and goes right after IN. Quotes inside an item are doubled, so O'Brien becomes 'O''Brien'. Oracle allows at most 1,000 items in one IN list.
How do I add quotes around each item in a list?
Choose Column to comma list and set Quotes to Single or Double. If your list is already on one line, first choose Comma list to column, copy the column, and paste it back.
Why are some items split in the wrong place?
An item with a comma inside it, like Smith, John, looks like two items. Put such items in double quotes, "Smith, John", and they stay whole when you split the list. Spreadsheets do the same when they save a CSV file.
Related tools
- Alphabetizer Sort a list A to Z, Z to A or by length.
- Remove Duplicate Lines Delete repeated lines from a list, or find the duplicates.
- Remove Line Breaks Fix text copied from PDFs and emails that breaks mid-sentence.
- Compare Two Lists Find what’s in one list but not the other, or in both.
- Binary Translator Translate binary to text and text to binary, emoji included.
- Blank Space Copy and Paste Copy invisible characters for blank names, messages and bios.
Updated October 23, 2026 · Works in current Chrome, Edge, Firefox and Safari · Runs entirely in your browser