Why convert SQL to XLS?
A .sql dump holds raw INSERT data that analysts and stakeholders need to filter, sort, and chart in Excel without database access. Exporting to .xls lets them work with the data directly in a familiar spreadsheet tool.
How to convert SQL to XLS
Navicat Premium APP
Connect to your database in Navicat Premium, run the .sql script to populate the tables, then use Export Wizard and select .xls as the destination format.
DBeaver OPEN-SOURCE
Import the .sql dump by running the script in DBeaver's SQL editor, then right-click a table and choose Export Data, selecting Excel as the output format.
Programs that convert SQL
About these formats
.SQL
SQL Script (Structured Query Language source / database dump)
A SQL file is a plain-text file containing SQL commands - schema definitions, INSERT statements, or queries. Open it in any text editor to read it; to use it, execute it against a database…
Open .SQL details →
.XLS
Microsoft Excel 97-2003 Workbook (Binary Interchange File Format, BIFF8)
An XLS file is an old-format Microsoft Excel spreadsheet from the Excel 97-2003 era, saved as a binary file rather than the ZIP-based XLSX used since 2007. You can open it free without…
Open .XLS details →Quality & what to watch
- The
.xlsformat is limited to 65,536 rows per sheet - choose XLSX for large tables, as most export tools default to XLSX when both options are available. - Only INSERT row data maps to spreadsheet rows; DDL statements such as CREATE TABLE, index definitions, and foreign keys are ignored during export.
- A MySQL dump may need dialect edits before importing into PostgreSQL or SQLite due to differences in quoting, AUTO_INCREMENT syntax, and ENGINE clauses.
Frequently asked questions
Can I convert the .sql file directly to XLS without a database?
.sql file mixes schema definitions with row data that only a database engine can correctly separate before export.
