A command-line data visualization tool
Data Exploration

© Photo by Dane Deaner on Unsplash
VisiData lets you easily manage, process, and view tabular data from multiple sources, all from the command line.
If you are looking for a way to manage your data from multiple sources, VisiData [1] can do the job. VisiData is a command-line tool that analyzes, reformats, and merges datasets in many different formats. It supports plain text files that contain JSON, XML, or Comma/Tab Separated Value (CSV/TSV) data; Python pandas DataFrames [2]; HTML tables; SQL databases; geospatial sets; OpenDocument or Microsoft Office spreadsheets; and more.
If data can be structured as tables consisting of rows and columns [3], VisiData can be the most efficient way to process the data in many cases. Being a command-line tool, VisiData is very fast, even with very big tables. You also can use VisiData across SSH connections or inside scripts, and it is easy to extend with Python functions. Finally, VisiData can process and even join datasets with different formats in the same session.
It helps to know a a little bit of Python, but you don't need to actually code anything to do lots of useful and fun stuff with VisiData. In this article, I will cover the main VisiData commands and tools, and then I'll show you VisiData's power with some simple examples using my personal database.
[...]
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you've found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
Zorin OS 17 Beta Available for Testing
The upcoming version of Zorin OS includes plenty of improvements to take your PC to a whole new level of user-friendliness.
-
Red Hat Migrates RHEL from Xorg to Wayland
If you've been wondering when Xorg will finally be a thing of the past, wonder no more, as Red Hat has made it clear.
-
PipeWire 1.0 Officially Released
PipeWire was created to take the place of the oft-troubled PulseAudio and has finally reached the 1.0 status as a major update with plenty of improvements and the usual bug fixes.
-
Rocky Linux 9.3 Available for Download
The latest version of the RHEL alternative is now available and brings back cloud and container images for ppc64le along with plenty of new features and fixes.
-
Ubuntu Budgie Shifts How to Tackle Wayland
Ubuntu Budgie has yet to make the switch to Wayland but with a change in approaches, they're finally on track to making it happen.
-
TUXEDO's New Ultraportable Linux Workstation Released
The TUXEDO Pulse 14 blends portability with power, thanks to the AMD Ryzen 7 7840HS CPU.
-
AlmaLinux Will No Longer Be "Just Another RHEL Clone"
With the release of AlmaLinux 9.3, the distribution will be built entirely from upstream sources.
-
elementary OS 8 Has a Big Surprise in Store
When elementary OS 8 finally arrives, it will not only be based on Ubuntu 24.04 but it will also default to Wayland for better performance and security.
-
OpenELA Releases Enterprise Linux Source Code
With Red Hat restricting the source for RHEL, it was only a matter of time before those who depended on that source struck out on their own.
-
StripedFly Malware Hiding in Plain Sight as a Cryptocurrency Miner
A rather deceptive piece of malware has infected 1 million Windows and Linux hosts since 2017.