What is a MapInfo TAB file?
MapInfo TAB is the native format of MapInfo Pro. A table is a set of files — .tab (structure), .dat (attributes), .map (geometry) and .id (index) — that must travel together.
It remains common in telecom, insurance, retail and public-sector teams that have worked with MapInfo for years.
What is a CSV file?
CSV (comma-separated values) is plain text where each line is a row and commas separate the columns. Location is stored in coordinate columns, such as latitude and longitude, or as WKT geometry text.
Every spreadsheet, database and BI tool reads CSV, which makes it the universal hand-off format. It has no data types, styles or coordinate system metadata.