---
title: "Export General Settings: Separators, Encoding, and Advanced Options"
description: "General export settings for WooCommerce CSV and XML files: separators, encoding and advanced options for every tool."
url: "https://wpfactory.com/docs/products-orders-export/"
updated: "2026-09-27"
category: How to
tags:
  - "Products & Order & Customers Export"
---

# Export General Settings: Separators, Encoding, and Advanced Options

The General section of [Export Products, Orders & Customers for WooCommerce](https://wpfactory.com/item/export-woocommerce/) controls how every CSV and XML file is written. Set these once and they apply to all five export tools. This guide walks through each option with its default.

[![Export WooCommerce General settings](https://wpfactory.com/wp-content/uploads/pasted-image-0-126-1024x444.png)](https://wpfactory.com/wp-content/uploads/pasted-image-0-126.png)

### Where to find it

Go to **WPFactory > Export** (also reachable at **WooCommerce > Settings > Export**) and open the **General** section.

### Export Options

| Setting | Option ID | Default | What it does |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| CSV Separator | `alg_export_csv_separator` | `,` | Character that separates columns in the CSV. Use a semicolon for locales where Excel expects one. |
| CSV Wrap | `alg_export_csv_wrap` | empty | Character that wraps each value. Set to a double quote to wrap values in quotes. |
| UTF-8 BOM | `alg_export_csv_add_utf_8_bom` | Yes | Adds a UTF-8 byte order mark so spreadsheet apps read accented characters correctly. |
| Content Length Header | `alg_export_csv_send_content_length_header` | Yes | Sends a Content-Length header. Turn this off if a download never finishes ("endless" download). |
| User Capability | `alg_export_csv_xml_user_capability` | `manage_options` | Capability required to export. Set to `manage_woocommerce` to let shop managers export too. |
| Timepicker | `alg_wc_export_add_timepicker` | No | Adds a time picker to the "Custom" date range in the export tools. |

### Secondary Separators

When a single column holds several values (for example order items, or a price and its label), these characters separate the parts.

| Setting | Option ID | Default |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Orders: Secondary Separator | `alg_export_csv_separator_2_orders` | ` / ` (space slash space) |
| Orders: Third Separator | `alg_export_csv_separator_3_orders` | `, ` (comma space) |
| Customers: Secondary Separator | `alg_export_csv_separator_2_customers` | ` / ` |
| Products: Secondary Separator | `alg_export_csv_separator_2_products` | `/` |

### Advanced Options

| Setting | Option ID | Default | What it does |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Block Size | `alg_wc_export_wp_query_block_size` | 1024 | Number of items processed per iteration (not bytes). Lower it if large exports run out of memory. |
| Time Limit | `alg_wc_export_time_limit` | -1 | Maximum export time in seconds. `-1` means the option is ignored and the server default is used; `0` means no time limit. |
| Ajax Download | `alg_wc_export_ajax_download` | No | Downloads in the background for high-volume data. Currently applies to the Product CSV export only. |
| Confirm HPOS enabled | `alg_wc_export_confirm_hpos` | No | Switches the order query to the High-Performance Order Storage tables. Enable this if orders exist but none appear in the export. |

**Note:** every option in the General section is free. Each section also has its own **Reset section settings** checkbox that restores that section to defaults when saved.

After changing anything here, click **Save changes** at the bottom of the section.

### Get more from your exports

These settings are free. [Export Products, Orders & Customers for WooCommerce](https://wpfactory.com/item/export-woocommerce/) Pro adds unlimited custom meta-field columns and extra export fields. [See what Pro unlocks](https://wpfactory.com/item/export-woocommerce/).

Related articles

- [General Settings and Separators Reference](https://wpfactory.com/docs/export-general-settings-reference/)
- [How to Control Who Can Export Your Store Data](https://wpfactory.com/docs/restrict-export-user-capability/)
- [How to Export Your Store Data to XML](https://wpfactory.com/docs/export-woocommerce-xml/)
- [How to Run an Export from the Export Dashboard](https://wpfactory.com/docs/export-dashboard-date-ranges/)
- [How to Add Custom Meta Field Columns to Your Export](https://wpfactory.com/docs/add-custom-meta-fields-export/)

 

[![Products, Order & Customers Export for WooCommerce](https://wpfactory.com/wp-content/uploads/Products-Order-Customers-Export-for-WooCommerce.webp)](https://wpfactory.com/item/export-woocommerce/)