MySQL introduced CSV storage engine as of version 4.1.4. The CSV storage engine stores table data in a comma separated format similar to that supported by many applications, such as OpenOffice and Microsoft Office. The CSV storage engine isn’t enabled by default, meaning you need to include the option --with-csv-storage-engine at configuration time to use it.

Although you access and manipulate CSV tables like any another table type, MyISAM for example, CSV tables are actually text files. This has an interesting implication in that you can actually copy an existing CSV file over the corresponding data file (labeled with a .csv extension) found in MySQL's designated data folder. Also, given CSV files' particular format, it's not possible to take advantage of typical database features such as indexes.

CSV Storage Related FAQs