How to Convert ICS to CSV using ICSviewer

How to Convert ICS to CSV using ICSviewer

ICS is the filename extension used for iCalendar (even if the name resembles Apple's iCal, it is not a format designed specially for this tool), a format used by many applications such as Google Calendar, Apple Calendar (formerly iCal), IBM Lotus Notes or Yahoo! Calendar for sharing calendar data such as appointment requests or various tasks with other Internet users. Simply put, ICS files are used to synchronize various types of calendars over the Internet. This type of file is very common on the web, but, dealing with them on local drives can prove to be quite troublesome. That's why converting them to CSV, a plain text format that can store data in an organized fashion seems to be a good choice. You can turn ICS files into CSV so that you can easily edit them in applications like the popular Microsoft Excel or other text editors (as CSV files are supported by many computer programs).

In this guide, I will show you how to turn your ICS files into CSV using ICSviewer 2.1 (Freeware) created by Marc Vos. I have chosen this application because it is the only free solution that I could find for converting ICS files into CSV. There are several other applications that can help you with this process, but you will find them in the "Alternative Downloads" section.

Here is the simple step-by-step tutorial for turning ICS files into CSV

Step 1

Open the ICS file by going to the "File" menu and selecting "Open".

Step 2

Select all the entries from your ICS file (either hold the Shift key and use your mouse, use the CTRL+A key combination or the "Select All" function under the "Edit" tab) and copy them (CTRL+C or the "Copy" function) to the clipboard. Additionally, you show to display and select the entries from a specified time period. To do that, you will have to provide the start and end date by using the two buttons.

Step 3

Create a new CSV file (you can create a new text document on your desktop and save it as a CSV) and paste the copied items (CTRL+V or "Paste" function).

Conclusion

Congratulations! You have successfully created a CSV document containing all the entries from your ICS file. As you can see, completing the given task using ICSviewer 2.1 (Freeware) is a very simple process and it will only take a couple of seconds (unless you want to select entries from a specific time frame). There is also an online service that can help you convert your ICS files into CSV, ICS to CSV Converter.