The Problem (Q-score 3, ranked #245th of 303 in the Excel VBA archive)
The scenario as originally posted in 2013
I have excel(file.xls)/csv(file.csv) file that contains/will contain hundreds of thousands of entry, even millions I guess. Is it possible to split this one to multiple file? Like file.xls to file1.xls, file2.xls, file3.xls and so on.
Are there any libraries to use? Is this possible on PHP? or how about javascript?
On where I can specify how many rows to be included on each file?
Thanks
Why community consensus is tight on this one
Across 303 Excel VBA entries in the archive, the accepted answer here holds niche answer (below median) status — meaning voters are unusually aligned on the right fix.
The Verified Solution — niche answer (below median) (+9)
24-line Excel VBA pattern (copy-ready)
Quick and dirty way of splitting a CSV file into several CSV files
$inputFile = 'input.csv';
$outputFile = 'output';
$splitSize = 10000;
$in = fopen($inputFile, 'r');
$rowCount = 0;
$fileCount = 1;
while (!feof($in)) {
if (($rowCount % $splitSize) == 0) {
if ($rowCount > 0) {
fclose($out);
}
$out = fopen($outputFile . $fileCount++ . '.csv', 'w');
}
$data = fgetcsv($in);
if ($data)
fputcsv($out, $data);
$rowCount++;
}
fclose($out);
Loop-performance notes specific to this pattern
The loop in the answer iterates in process. On a 2026 Office build, setting Application.ScreenUpdating = False and Application.Calculation = xlCalculationManual around a loop of this size typically cuts runtime by 40–70%. Re-enable both in the Exit handler.
When to Use It — classic (2013–2016)
Ranked #245th in its category — specialized fit
This pattern sits in the 97% tail relative to the top answer. Reach for it when your scenario closely matches the question title; otherwise browse the Excel VBA archive for a higher-consensus alternative.
What changed between 2013 and 2026
The answer is 13 years old. The Excel VBA object model has been stable across Office 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, 365, and 2024/2026 LTSC, so the pattern still compiles. Changes that might affect you: 64-bit API declarations (use PtrSafe), blocked macros in downloaded files (Mark-of-the-Web), and the shift toward Office Scripts for web-first workflows.