How to open .sav files without spss

What is a .SAV / SPSS file

A .sav file is a data file typically associated with IBM SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences). It is frequently used by researchers, including renowned organizations such as Pew Research.

Despite its widespread use, the file format is a proprietary binary format which is not compatible with many software applications. For instance, spreadsheet applications like Excel or Google Sheets do not support .sav files natively.

The .sav files can be opened using IBM SPSS or an open-source equivalent, named GNU PSPP. However, both these tools have their limitations. IBM software, despite being in existence since 1968, is cumbersome to use and quite costly. On the other hand, the open-source PSPP may not require a fee, but it is also hampered by an outdated and clunky interface.

AddMaple offers a more elegant alternative: open .sav files and analyze them immediately, or export to CSV after opening if you need a spreadsheet-friendly copy. We get you up and analyzing in seconds. AddMaple's intuitive filtering, segmentation and pivoting/cross tabulation features make data analysis fast and dare we say, even fun. Why? Because AddMaple turns columns into a chart dashboard in seconds and allows you to expand charts, click on a bar in a chart to segment by that response, pivot two or more columns for instant comparison across your data set and more.

How you can open a .sav file without SPSS

If you don't have IBM SPSS, you have a few options to open .sav files:

Open directly with AddMaple — upload your .sav file, analyze in the cloud, and export to CSV if you need a copy for Excel or Google Sheets. This is the quickest way to get from .sav to insights.
Use GNU PSPP — free, open-source software that can open .sav files and export to CSV. You’ll need to install it and work in its interface.
Use R with the Haven package — good if you already use R; you can read .sav and write CSV from there.

For example, this is the Pew Research Core Trends Survey sav file opened in AddMaple:

Core Trends Survey SPSS in AddMaple

The dataset contains 1,502 responses with 90 questions per response - it was analyzed and charts were produced for each question in 2.33 seconds.

How to convert a .sav file to a CSV

A CSV file is a very basic file type that can be opened by many different software packages. A CSV file is less efficient than a .sav SPSS file—the same data will result in a bigger CSV file—but CSV is universal. To convert a .sav file to CSV: open the .sav file in AddMaple and export or download as CSV, or use PSPP or R (with the Haven package) to read the .sav and write a CSV. Once you have a CSV, you can open it anywhere. For more detailed guidance on converting SAV to CSV (including in the browser, no install, with labels extracted), see our SPSS (SAV) to CSV converter page.

How to open a .sav file in Excel or Google Sheets

To open a .sav file in Excel or Google Sheets you need to first convert it to .csv, since spreadsheet applications don’t support .sav natively. Open your .sav file in AddMaple and export or download as CSV, then open that CSV in Excel, Google Sheets or Numbers. For step-by-step conversion guidance (convert in the browser, download CSV, open in Excel without SPSS), see our SPSS (SAV) to CSV converter page. Alternatively, use PSPP or R to convert the .sav to CSV, then open the CSV in your spreadsheet. Either way, you get your .sav data into Excel or Google Sheets without IBM SPSS.

How can I get cross-tabs and pivots from my sav file

If you open your sav file in AddMaple or use our Online Pivot Table Tool you can quickly and intuitively create cross-tabs, segment your data and create beautiful pivot tables and graphs.