How to Convert CSV to JSON in Python FOSS

Problem

Convert a CSV file to JSON using Aspose.Cells FOSS in Python. Load the CSV with load_csv_workbook(), read each row using iter_rows() to build a Python list of dictionaries, then serialize to JSON using the standard json module.

Prerequisites

To convert CSV to JSON using Aspose.Cells FOSS in Python, ensure your environment meets the following requirements.

Python 3.7 or later installed
Install Aspose.Cells FOSS via pip install aspose-cells-foss>=26.3.1
Import the library using from aspose.cells_foss import load_csv_workbook
Basic familiarity with Python file handling and the standard json module

Conversion Steps

Step 1: Load the CSV File

Use the load_csv_workbook() convenience function to load the CSV file into a new workbook. This initializes the in-memory representation of the spreadsheet data.

from aspose.cells_foss import load_csv_workbook

workbook = load_csv_workbook("data.csv")
worksheet = workbook.worksheets[0]

Step 2: Read Headers and Rows

Use iter_rows(values_only=True) to extract all rows as tuples of cell values. The first row is treated as the header row.

all_rows = list(worksheet.cells.iter_rows(values_only=True))

# Read the header row (first row)
headers = [str(v) if v is not None else f"col{i}" for i, v in enumerate(all_rows[0])]

Step 3: Build a List of Dicts and Serialize to JSON

Iterate the remaining rows, build a dict per row keyed by the header names, then use json.dump() to write the JSON file.

import json

rows = [dict(zip(headers, row)) for row in all_rows[1:]]

with open("output.json", "w", encoding="utf-8") as f:
    json.dump(rows, f, indent=2, default=str)

print(f"Converted {len(rows)} rows to output.json")

Code Example

The complete end-to-end example combining all three steps:

import json
from aspose.cells_foss import load_csv_workbook

# Step 1: Load CSV
workbook = load_csv_workbook("data.csv")
worksheet = workbook.worksheets[0]

# Step 2: Extract all rows; first row is headers
all_rows = list(worksheet.cells.iter_rows(values_only=True))
if not all_rows:
    print("No data found in CSV")
else:
    headers = [str(v) if v is not None else f"col{i}" for i, v in enumerate(all_rows[0])]

    # Step 3: Build list of dicts from remaining rows
    rows = [dict(zip(headers, row)) for row in all_rows[1:]]

    # Step 4: Write JSON
    with open("output.json", "w", encoding="utf-8") as f:
        json.dump(rows, f, indent=2, default=str)

    print(f"Converted {len(rows)} rows to output.json")

Supported Formats

Aspose.Cells FOSS supports loading CSV files and exporting to JSON via the approach shown above. The library also supports direct save to other formats.

Format	Extension	Notes
CSV (input)	.csv	Load with `load_csv_workbook("file.csv")`
JSON (output)	.json	Built with Python `json.dump()` after iterating cells
XLSX (input/output)	.xlsx	Standard Excel Open XML format
Markdown (output)	.md	Use `wb.save_as_markdown("file.md")`