Convert Excel to SQLite

Q: How do I convert Excel to SQLite?

Drop your file on the converter at the top of this page. It finds the header, reads every value and writes the SQLite script, listing each fix it made. Download the script and run it with sqlite3.

Q: Which sheet of the workbook is converted?

The first visible sheet. When a workbook has more than one, a Sheet option appears, so you can pick another.

Q: Which SQLite types does it use?

Yes and no values become BOOLEAN, whole numbers INTEGER, decimals NUMERIC(p,s), dates DATE, dates with a time DATETIME and text TEXT. Sizes come from the longest value in each column.

Q: Does it keep leading zeros in SQLite?

Yes. A code such as 00127 stays text, so SQLite stores it as TEXT and the script writes it as '00127'.

Q: Can it load the data into SQLite without a script?

Yes, for free: intosql load creates the SQLite database file and loads the rows in. The converter on this page also downloads a ready .sqlite database.

Q: How big can the Excel file be?

In the browser, a workbook is read whole, so the limit is the memory the browser gives this page. The desktop app and the command line take workbooks of any size; on an Apple M4 laptop the command line converts a 117 MB workbook of a million rows in about a second.

Drop your Excel file to get a SQLite script with CREATE TABLE and INSERT statements. Each column gets a type, and every fix is listed with its row and column.

OutputSheetHeader rowDates

4 rows converted, 10 fixes, none rejected

Your fileSQL10 fixes

The first rows of clientes_2024.xlsx, with each fix marked
Row
5	00127	Peña Muñoz	01234	03/02/2024	sí	1.234,50
6	00128	José Ángel	09870	15/02/2024	no	N/A
7	00129	Zoë Ortíz	44100	29/02/2024	sí	-12,00
8	00130	Ñuño Castañeda	06700	11/03/2024	no	980,75
9
10
11
12
13
14

-- Written by IntoSQL for SQLite.

BEGIN;

CREATE TABLE clientes_2024 (
    no_cliente TEXT NOT NULL, -- Nº Cliente
    nombre TEXT NOT NULL,
    c_p TEXT NOT NULL, -- C.P.
    alta DATE NOT NULL,
    activo BOOLEAN NOT NULL,
    saldo NUMERIC(6,2)
);

INSERT INTO clientes_2024 (no_cliente, nombre, c_p, alta, activo, saldo) VALUES
('00127', 'Peña Muñoz', '01234', '2024-02-03', 1, 1234.50),
('00128', 'José Ángel', '09870', '2024-02-15', 0, NULL),
('00129', 'Zoë Ortíz', '44100', '2024-02-29', 1, -12.00),
('00130', 'Ñuño Castañeda', '06700', '2024-03-11', 0, 980.75);

COMMIT;

Fixes

The header is on row 4; the rows above it were left out.
Row 9 ("TOTAL") is a total, so it was left out.
Column "Nº Cliente" is named no_cliente so SQLite reads it without quotes.
Column "C.P." is named c_p so SQLite reads it without quotes.
Leading zeros kept in "Nº Cliente": 00127 stays 00127, stored as text.
Leading zeros kept in "C.P.": 01234 stays 01234, stored as text.
15/02/2024 proves the dates in "Alta" are day-first, so 03/02/2024 is read as 2024‑02‑03.
"Activo" holds yes and no words (sí, no), stored as boolean.
Numbers in "Saldo" use a decimal comma: 1.234,50 is read as 1234.50.
N/A in "Saldo" read as empty (1 of 4 values).

Your file is converted on this computer and never uploaded.

Other samples:

From Excel to SQLite, column by column

The sample above, clientes_2024.xlsx, as IntoSQL writes it for SQLite: what each column holds in the file, the type it gets and how its first value lands in the script.

In the file	First value	Column	SQLite type	In the script
Nº Cliente	00127	no_cliente	TEXT	'00127'
Nombre	Peña Muñoz	nombre	TEXT	'Peña Muñoz'
C.P.	01234	c_p	TEXT	'01234'
Alta	03/02/2024	alta	DATE	'2024-02-03'
Activo	sí	activo	BOOLEAN	1
Saldo	1.234,50	saldo	NUMERIC(6,2)	1234.50

Load the script into SQLite

The download is a plain .sql file. Run it with SQLite's own tools.

From a terminal

$sqlite3 clientes_2024.db < clientes_2024.sqlite.sql

The database file is created if it doesn't exist. The converter also downloads a ready .sqlite database, with no command at all.

From a database tool

In DB Browser for SQLite, choose Execute SQL, open the script and run it.

Without a script

The command line loads the file straight into a SQLite database, without writing a script. It's free.

$intosql load clientes_2024.xlsx --into clientes_2024.db

What to know about Excel files and SQLite

What IntoSQL reads in Excel files

The header row is found even when titles or notes sit above it, and a totals row at the end is left out.
Dates stored as Excel serial numbers become real dates, in both the 1900 and the 1904 date systems.
Codes with leading zeros, like 00127, stay text. When a workbook has several sheets, you pick the sheet.

What to know about SQLite

Each column gets the type its values need, like INTEGER, NUMERIC, TEXT, DATE or BOOLEAN; yes and no are stored as 1 and 0.
Decimals with more than 15 digits stay TEXT, so no digit is rounded away.
Download the SQLite script, or a ready .sqlite database built in your browser.

How each kind of value is stored in SQLite

Value	SQLite
Yes and no	BOOLEAN
Whole numbers	INTEGER
Large whole numbers	INTEGER
Decimals	NUMERIC(p,s)TEXT
Floating-point numbers	REAL
Dates	DATE
Times of day	TIME
Dates with a time	DATETIME
Dates with a time and offset	DATETIME
Text	TEXT

Questions about Excel to SQLite

Not answered here? Write to us from the contact page and a person replies. Contact page

How do I convert Excel to SQLite?

Drop your file on the converter at the top of this page. It finds the header, reads every value and writes the SQLite script, listing each fix it made. Download the script and run it with sqlite3.

Which sheet of the workbook is converted?

The first visible sheet. When a workbook has more than one, a Sheet option appears, so you can pick another.

Which SQLite types does it use?

Yes and no values become BOOLEAN, whole numbers INTEGER, decimals NUMERIC(p,s), dates DATE, dates with a time DATETIME and text TEXT. Sizes come from the longest value in each column.

Does it keep leading zeros in SQLite?

Yes. A code such as 00127 stays text, so SQLite stores it as TEXT and the script writes it as '00127'.

Can it load the data into SQLite without a script?

Yes, for free: intosql load creates the SQLite database file and loads the rows in. The converter on this page also downloads a ready .sqlite database.

How big can the Excel file be?

In the browser, a workbook is read whole, so the limit is the memory the browser gives this page. The desktop app and the command line take workbooks of any size; on an Apple M4 laptop the command line converts a 117 MB workbook of a million rows in about a second.