Skip to main content

What Each Format Is For

A practical guide to picking the right export. Match the format to your destination — the system you're moving data into, the audience you're publishing to, or the workflow you're feeding.

CSV — Spreadsheet analysis​

One row per item, one column per field. Open in Excel, Google Sheets, or Numbers.

Use it for:

  • Quick reviews of what's in a collection
  • Quality assurance — spotting missing fields
  • Simple migration to systems that accept CSV import
  • Ad-hoc reports for grant funders

Avoid it for: Hierarchical structures (Fonds → Series → Item nests don't survive CSV well — use EAD3 instead).

JSON — Programmatic consumption​

Nested, hierarchical, machine-readable. The most faithful round-trip of The Archiver's data model.

Use it for:

  • Building custom websites or visualisations over your archive
  • Feeding a CMS that has a JSON import endpoint
  • Backups (it preserves everything)
  • Integrations with other tools (Notion, custom Python scripts, etc.)

Markdown — Human-readable plain text​

One Markdown file per item, with metadata as front-matter and content as the body.

Use it for:

  • Publishing as a static site (GitHub Pages, Hugo, Eleventy, Astro)
  • Sharing with non-archival colleagues who want plain English
  • Quick distribution via Dropbox / OneDrive / email
  • Onward editing in any text editor

PDF Report — Finding aid for researchers​

A formatted document with cover, table of contents, fond/series structure, and per-item summaries.

Use it for:

  • Putting on your website as a researcher-facing finding aid
  • Printing for the reading room
  • Sending to a researcher as an enquiry response
  • Donor reports — proof you've described the donation

EAD3 XML — Archives-to-archives standard​

Encoded Archival Description, 3rd version — the XML standard for archival finding aids.

Use it for:

  • Submitting to a national aggregator (UK NRA, US ArchiveGrid, Archives Portal Europe)
  • Migration between archival catalogues that both support EAD3
  • Long-term standards-compliant preservation of the description (not the files)

Required by: Most national archival aggregators and many institutional consortia.

Dublin Core XML — Libraries and repositories​

The Dublin Core Metadata Element Set — 15 simple, widely-supported fields.

Use it for:

  • Pushing into a Dublin-Core-aware repository (DSpace, Omeka, ContentDM)
  • Cross-domain aggregators like Europeana
  • Linked Data publishing where you want a familiar, well-supported schema

Note: Dublin Core is intentionally minimal — much of The Archiver's richer metadata (conservation notes, sensitivity flags, custom fields) is dropped or coerced into the 15 core elements. Use it when reach matters more than fidelity.

AtoM CSV — AtoM (Access to Memory)​

CSV format tailored for import into AtoM — the open-source archival description application from Artefactual.

Use it for:

  • Migrating an archive from The Archiver to an AtoM-hosted public catalogue
  • Feeding a community archive's AtoM instance from a curated workflow

ArchivesSpace CSV — ArchivesSpace​

CSV format compatible with ArchivesSpace's bulk import.

Use it for:

  • North American institutions running ArchivesSpace as their catalogue
  • Migrating descriptions into the ArchivesSpace ecosystem

Archivematica CSV — Preservation workflows​

CSV format for Archivematica's METS-aware ingest workflows.

Use it for:

  • Sending materials into Archivematica for long-term preservation packaging
  • Pairing with BagIt to produce a complete preservation submission

Spectrum CSV — UK museum collections​

CSV format that maps to Spectrum 5.1, the UK Collections Trust standard for museum collections management.

Use it for:

  • UK museums migrating to or from a Spectrum-compliant collections management system (Modes, Adlib, MuseumPlus)
  • Heritage organisations needing Spectrum-formatted data for funder reports

BagIt — Preservation transfer​

A directory containing your files plus manifest files with checksums (SHA-512), bag-info.txt, and manifest.txt.

Use it for:

  • Submitting to an OAIS-compliant preservation system
  • Long-term storage with file integrity guarantees
  • Transferring an entire archive to another institution

Pairs well with: Archivematica, Preservica, the Digital Preservation Coalition's recommended workflows.

PREMIS XML — Preservation events​

Records the lifecycle events of digital objects — ingestion, fixity checks, format identification, normalisation, access events.

Use it for:

  • Demonstrating audit-trail preservation provenance to funders or auditors
  • Pairing with BagIt for fully-documented preservation transfers

Note: PREMIS is an export-only format. You can describe what The Archiver has done with your files; you can't ingest PREMIS back into The Archiver.

How to choose, in one line​

Pick the format your destination expects. If you have a choice, pick JSON for fidelity, EAD3 for archival standards compliance, and BagIt for preservation.