Bank statement guide
Bank statement CSV for QuickBooks Online and Xero
Updated
Start with your bank’s own transaction export when it is available. If you have a PDF instead, extract and check the rows, then map dates, descriptions and signed amounts before importing.
Bank transactions and supplier bills are different records. This guide covers preparing a statement CSV for a manual import.
Convert a bank statementReview workflow
Choose the source before converting
Check your bank’s export options
Look for a CSV or an accounting format accepted by your accounting system for the required account and period. Keep the monthly PDF too: it is the source for your printed opening and closing balances.
Check the native QuickBooks option
Intuit’s current US help also documents uploading an English PDF or image statement in QuickBooks Online. If your account offers this, inspect the extracted fields in its review screen. Check the linked help for current regional availability and menus.
Use a converter when you need a spreadsheet
For one statement within 5 pages and 10 MB, the free statement tool exports Excel or CSV. Inspect its balance result and compare rows with the statement before preparing an import copy.
Sources checked 10 October 2026: Intuit: manual bank transaction upload
Review workflow
Prepare a small import copy
Keep the review export intact
IPP’s CSV includes date, description, debit, credit, amount, balance, check, debit_printed and credit_printed. Keep that file as your review record. Make a separate copy with only the fields your accounting system needs.
Choose one signed amount column
For a deposit-account example, amount is credit minus debit: money received is positive, money spent is negative. Do not import amount alongside debit and credit as three separate transaction values. Check credit card direction separately in the import preview.
Make dates explicit
Use a consistent date format. In the downloadable examples, 02/09/2026 means September 2, 2026, using day/month/year. Check an unambiguous date such as September 26 in the preview before accepting the format.
Exclude non-transaction rows
Keep opening and closing balances, summary totals and review notes outside the import file. Use plain numeric amounts without currency symbols or thousands separators. Confirm that each statement transaction has one row.
Sources checked 10 October 2026: Intuit: CSV dates and amounts · Xero: import a CSV bank statement
Review workflow
Map the file in QuickBooks Online
Open the bank transaction upload
Follow Intuit’s current manual upload instructions: select the intended bank or credit card account and Upload from file. Use the transaction-list upload for your CSV.
Map Date, Description and Amount
Intuit documents a three-column Date, Description, Amount layout and a four-column alternative. Our fictional three-column example uses one signed Amount. Select the matching date format and check both a receipt and a payment.
Review the period and duplicates
Compare the upload period with transactions already present. Inspect the preview and exclude overlapping rows before finishing. Complete categorisation and your normal accounting review in QuickBooks.
Sources checked 10 October 2026: Intuit: manual bank transaction upload · Intuit: CSV dates and amounts
Review workflow
Map the file in Xero
Use the intended account’s CSV import
Follow Xero’s current CSV bank statement instructions for the account that owns these transactions. Use the original bank CSV when it already has the required data, or your checked import copy.
Assign the required fields
Map your date column to Transaction Date and the signed amount column to Transaction Amount. Map the description to the appropriate descriptive field. Xero requires the date and amount assignments.
Review warnings, dates and direction
Inspect the review summary before completing the import. Fix errors in the file and try again. Xero prompts for ambiguous date formats and identifies matching transactions as duplicates; still inspect the period and rows yourself.
Sources checked 10 October 2026: Xero: import a CSV bank statement
A handoff a bookkeeper can review
Keep the source statement, untouched review export and import copy together. Record the account, currency, period and the date you checked it. Note every correction and unresolved row.
The fictional sample has nine transactions. Its opening 12,480.15 plus credits 15,225.40 less debits 10,671.80 equals closing 17,033.75. The import samples keep those nine transaction amounts; opening and closing are review figures, not imported transactions.
- Confirm the first and last transaction dates belong to this statement.
- Compare payment and receipt signs with the source and import preview.
- Check overlap with the previous import and retain unresolved exceptions.
Work through the fictional example
Example Bank and Example Logistics Co. are invented. Use these files to inspect the layout and arithmetic. Keep them out of your live books.
The free statement tool’s scope
- One PDF, JPG or PNG statement at a time, up to 5 pages and 10 MB. No account is needed. The daily allowance is 3 documents per browser, shared with the invoice tool and subject to shared service limits.
- The tool checks arithmetic on the extracted statement. It does not connect to your bank or match transactions to your books. You prepare and import the file yourself.
- Review the source and the exported rows before using them. A matching closing total alone does not prove that every transaction was read correctly.
Questions
Can I import IPP’s CSV unchanged?
Prepare an import copy and map its fields. IPP’s CSV is a review export with balance and check columns; it is not a QuickBooks- or Xero-specific upload template.
Do I need a converter for every statement?
Start with the bank’s own export. Intuit also documents native PDF/image statement upload in QuickBooks Online. A converter is useful when you need a checked spreadsheet from a PDF or scan.
Will IPP send statement transactions into my accounting system?
No. This workflow ends with a spreadsheet download. You prepare the import and review it in your accounting system.