Parse CSV and convert to JSON using n8n action

PDF4me Parse CSV translates text-based CSV/TSV files into clean JSON arrays from any n8n workflow. Drop in files from SharePoint, S3, or email attachments, pick a delimiter, decide whether to use custom headers or the first row, and instantly receive structured JSON for APIs, databases, or Excel insertion.

Setup

Add the PDF4me “Parse CSV” node to your n8n workflow and configure the required parameters. For initial setup instructions, see our n8n Integration Guide.

Prerequisites

• PDF4me API credentials
• n8n workflow access

Get Your API Key

Configuration

1. Add the PDF4me node to the workflow
2. Select the "Parse CSV and convert to JSON" action
3. Provide the CSV source, delimiter, and header strategy

Parameters

Important: Parameters marked with an asterisk (***) are required. PDF4me outputs a JSON array serialized as UTF-8 bytes.

Parameter	Type	Description	Example
Input Data Type***	String	CSV source (Binary Data, Base64 String, URL).	Binary Data
Input Binary Field***	Binary	Required when reading from a binary attachment.	{{ $binary.data }}
Base64 Document Content***	String	Required when providing base64 CSV text.	VXNlcm5hbWUsRW1haWwK...
Document URL***	String	Required for public HTTP(S) URLs.	https://files.example.com/leads.csv
File Name***	String	Name of the CSV file (for reference/logging).	leads.csv
Delimiter***	String	Field separator (,, ;, \t, `	`, or custom multi-character string).
Column Headers	String	Optional comma-separated list of headers. Overrides file headers when provided.	FirstName,LastName,Email
Skip First Line	Boolean	When true and Column Headers is empty, the first CSV line becomes headers. false auto-generates Column1, Column2...	true
Binary Data Output Name***	String	Binary slot storing the JSON file (e.g., parsed_data.json).	document

Output

Output Parameters

Parameter	Type	Description	Example
txtFileName	String	TXT output filename - The name of the generated TXT file containing parsed CSV data	parsed_data.txt
jsonFileName	String	JSON output filename - The name of the generated JSON file containing parsed CSV data	parsed_data.json
txtFileSize	Number	TXT file size in bytes - The size of the TXT output file in bytes	657614
jsonFileSize	Number	JSON file size in bytes - The size of the JSON output file in bytes	657614
success	Boolean	PDF4me operation status - Boolean flag indicating the success or failure of the CSV parsing process. PDF4me returns true for successful operations and false for any errors	true
originalFileName	String	Original CSV filename - The name of the input CSV file	data.csv
delimiter	String	Delimiter used - The field separator character(s) that was used for parsing the CSV	,
skipFirstLine	Boolean	First line skip status - Indicates whether the first line was skipped. true if first line was used as headers, false if first line was treated as data	false
columnHeaders	String	Column headers source - Description of where column headers came from. Shows "from CSV" if headers were read from the file, or the custom headers if provided	from CSV
cultureName	String	Culture/Locale code - Culture code used for parsing (e.g., "en-US", "de-DE", "fr-FR")	en-US
message	String	Operation message - Descriptive message indicating the result of the CSV parsing operation	Successfully converted CSV and created TXT and JSON outputs

N8N Action Response

The PDF4me Parse CSV and convert to JSON API returns a response that can be viewed in multiple formats. Choose the view that best fits your needs:

JSON

JSON Response Format

The raw JSON response from the API:

[
  {
    "txtFileName": "parsed_data.txt",
    "jsonFileName": "parsed_data.json",
    "txtFileSize": 657614,
    "jsonFileSize": 657614,
    "success": true,
    "originalFileName": "data.csv",
    "delimiter": ",",
    "skipFirstLine": false,
    "columnHeaders": "from CSV",
    "cultureName": "en-US",
    "message": "Successfully converted CSV and created TXT and JSON outputs"
  }
]

Table

Table View

Response data in a structured table format:

Parameter	Value
txtFileName	parsed_data.txt
jsonFileName	parsed_data.json
txtFileSize	657614
jsonFileSize	657614
success	true
originalFileName	data.csv
delimiter	,
skipFirstLine	false
columnHeaders	from CSV
cultureName	en-US
message	Successfully converted CSV and created TXT and JSON outputs

Note: The action returns two binary outputs - data_txt (TXT format) and data_json (JSON format), both containing the same parsed CSV data.

Schema

Schema View

The data structure and types of the response:

1 item
txtFileName: T parsed_data.txt
jsonFileName: T parsed_data.json
txtFileSize: # 657614
jsonFileSize: # 657614
success: ☑ true
originalFileName: T data.csv
delimiter: T ,
skipFirstLine: ☑ false
columnHeaders: T from CSV
cultureName: T en-US
message: T Successfully converted CSV and created TXT and JSON outputs

Type Indicators:

• T = String (Text)
• # = Number
• ☑ = Boolean
• [] = Array

Binary

Binary Data View

The parsed CSV data is returned as two binary files - one in TXT format and one in JSON format:

data_txt
─────────────────────────────
File Name: parsed_data.txt
File Extension: txt
Mime Type: text/plain
File Size: 657.6 kB

data_json
─────────────────────────────
File Name: parsed_data.json
File Extension: json
Mime Type: application/json
File Size: 657.6 kB

Binary Data Access:

• TXT Binary Object: $binary.data_txt.data
• JSON Binary Object: $binary.data_json.data
• Base64 Content: Available for direct use in both formats
• File Operations: Ready for download, email, or storage

Use Cases

• Database loads: Convert CSV exports to JSON before executing SQL inserts or REST calls.
• Excel population: Parse CSV, then feed the resulting JSON straight into “Add Rows”.
• Data validation/masking: Turn CSV submissions into JSON for rule checks, transformations, or redaction workflows.

Get Help

n8n Integration Guiden8n SampleGetting Started