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Can I get my window measurements into Excel?

Yes — if the measurements exist as a CSV file, they can be opened straight away in Excel, Numbers or Google Sheets. It's the easiest route from a list of measurements to a spreadsheet you can keep working in yourself.

What's the difference between a PDF and a CSV?

A PDF is a finished page — layout, typeface and lines are locked in place, and it's the format you print or send for a signature. A CSV is the opposite: raw data with no layout, but precisely for that reason easy to import into a spreadsheet, a database or another program. If a supplier asks for "a schedule", they usually mean a PDF to look at. If they ask for "data" or "a spreadsheet", they mean a CSV or an Excel file they can sort and calculate on themselves.

What a CSV file looks like on the inside

If you open the file in a plain text editor instead of a spreadsheet, it looks roughly like this:

• Room;Position;Width_cm;Height_cm;Type
• Living room;W-04;118;138;Casement
• Living room;W-05;118;138;Fixed pane
• Kitchen;D-02;90;210;Patio door

The first line holds the column names, the rest is data — each line separated by a line break, each value separated by a semicolon (or a comma, depending on how the file was made). That's the whole secret of the format: no typefaces, no colours, just numbers and text in a fixed order that any program can read into rows and columns.

Which format do contractors use?

It depends more on trade habits than on any single fixed rule:

• Window suppliers often ask for a spreadsheet or a CSV, because they're going to type the figures into their own ordering system anyway — fewer typing errors when data can be imported directly.
• Painters and flooring contractors are often happy with a PDF listing areas, because they need one combined figure, not a line per opening.
• Architects and engineers typically prefer a drawing file (DXF) over a spreadsheet, because they keep working geometrically, not in tables.
• Bookkeeping and procurement almost always prefer a spreadsheet — it's easier to add up, compare quotes and drop into a budget.

If you're unsure, just ask directly: "would you like this as a PDF or as a spreadsheet?" That saves a round trip of sending the same data again in the wrong format.

How to open a CSV file correctly

Most programs can open a CSV by simply double-clicking it, but the separator character (comma or semicolon) and the number format (period or comma as the decimal mark) can occasionally produce a file that lands in the wrong columns. If the file looks wrong when opened:

1. Open the spreadsheet program first, and use the "import" or "open as text" function instead of double-clicking the file.
2. Choose the separator yourself in the import window — most spreadsheet programs guess correctly, but not always.
3. Check that the figures land as numbers, not as text — you can tell because they're left-aligned instead of right-aligned in the cell.

"Can't I just use Google Sheets straight from my phone?"

Yes, and for many people that's the fastest route from a shared file to a usable spreadsheet. If you receive a CSV file on your phone — as an email attachment or shared from an app — you can usually open it directly in the Google Sheets or Excel app without going near a computer. Watch out for two things on a small screen: it's easier to miss whether the file has landed in clean columns or ended up as one long text string in the first column, and it's easier to accidentally edit a figure while navigating with your finger. Always check the first few rows before forwarding the file or using the figures for anything.

What you can calculate once the data is in a spreadsheet

Once the window measurements sit as rows and columns, a few formulas can get you:

• Total window area for the whole home, for example for an energy calculation.
• Count of each type — fixed pane, casement, patio door — to negotiate a volume discount with a supplier.
• Comparison of quotes, when two suppliers have priced the same openings differently.

That's exactly the sort of thing a PDF is bad at — you can read the figures, but you can't let the spreadsheet do the work for you.

Common mistakes when data moves between formats

• The decimal mark changes meaning. A figure written as "1.18" can in some spreadsheets be read as "one hundred and eighteen", not "one point one eight metres" — always check that the totals make sense.
• Columns collapse together. If the file uses a semicolon but the spreadsheet expects a comma, the whole row ends up in one cell instead of five.
• The header row gets counted in. If you forget to exclude the first line (the column names) from a sum formula, the spreadsheet counts the text as zero and skews the result.
• The unit gets lost. A column showing "118" can be cm in one place and mm in another — always write the unit in the column name, not only in the heading of the document.

What if the supplier only accepts a PDF?

Some smaller businesses don't have a system that imports CSV, and would rather have a single page they can print and scribble notes on by hand. In that case, send both if you can — a PDF to look at and sign, and a CSV or spreadsheet standing by in case they end up needing to calculate on the figures after all.

Can I make a CSV myself if I don't have one from an app?

Yes — it takes nothing more than a spreadsheet. Open Excel, Numbers or Google Sheets, set one column for room, one for position, one for width, one for height and one for type. Write one line per window or door. Once the list is done, you can save or export it as a CSV via the "save as" or "export" menu — most spreadsheet programs offer it as a standard option alongside their own file format. It takes a little longer than getting a list generated automatically, but the result is the same: a file any supplier can import.

Why not just send a photo of the list?

A photo of a handwritten list, or a screenshot of a spreadsheet, is quick to send, but it's poor for working with further — the recipient has to retype the figures to be able to calculate on them themselves, and that's exactly where mistakes creep in. A figure typed in a second time by someone who never measured it themselves is a prime source of a swapped width and height. So always send the figures as text or in a spreadsheet, not as an image, when they're going to be used for anything beyond looking at.

What HouseSense does

The window and door schedule in HouseSense can be shared both ways: as a PDF for printing and signing, or as a CSV file ready for Excel or Numbers. It's the same data in two formats — pick whichever the recipient asks for, without having to retype the figures twice.

Which format should you choose?

1. Does the file need printing, signing or just reading? PDF.
2. Does the recipient need to calculate, sort or import the figures somewhere else? CSV or spreadsheet.
3. Don't know what the recipient will use it for? Send both — attaching two files costs nothing extra.
4. Will the file get typed in manually at the recipient's end regardless? Then a CSV is wasted effort — ask whether a PDF is enough.