When sorting CSV data with PowerShell, I observed unexpected results, as shown in the screenshot below. The initial command, Import-Csv C:\Temp\Numberings.csv, shows that the numbers in the CSV are out of sequence. To sort these numbers, I used the simple pipeline command Sort-Object specifying the Numbers property (column header).
The output clearly shows the unexpected result: 11 and 18 are incorrectly placed before 2. This poor sorting is the tell-tale sign that PowerShell is treating the column property as a string rather than a true number.
This unexpected result occurs because the Numbers property is currently being read as a string (str) rather than a true number. To ensure proper numeric sorting, we must explicitly convert (cast) the data type of the Numbers property to an integer (int). Here is the command you need to execute to get correct output:
Import-Csv C:\Temp\numberings.csv | Sort-Object { [int]$_.Numbers }
Below is the complete command you can use with parameter and syntax. Sort-Object uses an expression in a script block to coerce the value of the Numbers property to convert to Integer.
Import-Csv -Path $csvPath | Sort-Object -Property @{ Expression = { [int]$_.Numbers } # The Fix: Cast the string property value to [int] Ascending = $true }
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