How to import a bank statement into Xero

Bank feed or file?

Xero’s bank feeds bring transactions in automatically, so connect one if your bank offers it. Importing a file is for the rest:

• your bank has no feed, or you reconcile only now and then,
• the feed is connected but transactions from before it started are missing,
• the account is closed, or the history is older than the feed reaches.

If only a few transactions are missing, Xero suggests creating them by hand and marking them reconciled instead of importing a file.

Which file to use

Download a separate file for each bank account; each import goes into one account in Xero.

How to import a statement into Xero, step by step

1. In the Accounting menu, select Bank accounts.
2. Find the account, click its menu icon (the three dots) and select Import a Statement.
3. Under File to upload, drag the file in or click Select file, then Next.
4. For a CSV, assign the columns to Xero’s fields (Date and Amount are required) and, if asked, choose the date format. Xero remembers your choices for the next CSV.
5. Review the transactions. Clear the tick beside any you don’t want. Lines Xero already has are treated as duplicates and won’t be imported.
6. Click Complete import. The transactions appear as statement lines, ready to reconcile.

Xero’s CSV rules

Most failed imports are CSV files that break one of these. From Xero’s help, in plain words:

• Date and Amount are the only required columns. Payee, Description, Reference and Check (or Cheque) Number are optional but make reconciling easier.
• One Amount column for both directions. Money in is positive, money out negative, written as -30.00 or (30.00). Separate debit and credit columns have to be combined.
• Delete the balance columns. Xero works out the balance from the transactions. Delete the account number and any empty rows too.
• One header row, in row 1, with a different name for each column.
• One date format for every date, such as DD/MM/YYYY, MM/DD/YYYY or YYYY/MM/DD.
• No commas for decimals. Write 30.00, not 30,00.
• At most 100,000 rows.
• Payee names that match your Xero contacts exactly, or Xero may create duplicate contacts.

Xero gives you a template with the right headings: on the Import a Statement screen, click the link to download the Xero CSV template. Its headings follow your browser’s language, so you may see “Check Number” or “Cheque Number”.

The columns, in Xero’s order:

*Date,*Amount,Payee,Description,Reference,Check Number

Our converter’s “Xero” download uses exactly this layout, with money out already negative and the date order you choose. You will find it on the bank statement to CSV and bank statement to Excel converters and on the home page.

Importing a PDF statement

Xero can read a PDF statement straight from your bank, with conditions. According to Xero’s help, the PDF has to:

• belong to an organisation in the United States or Canada, not on the Xero Ledger plan,
• be 35 MB or smaller, and 100 pages or fewer,
• be in English, and not password protected,
• if scanned, be at least 200 DPI and scanned straight.

Xero lists banks whose statements it has validated, including Chase, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Capital One, Citibank, RBC, TD Canada Trust and BMO. Statements from other banks can still be imported, but Xero warns that accuracy may vary. Even when your bank offers PDFs, Xero recommends OFX if it is available.

Outside the US and Canada: convert the PDF first

In the UK, Australia, New Zealand and everywhere else, Xero won’t take a PDF statement. Convert it to OFX, Xero’s preferred format, and import that. Our converter reads the PDF in your browser (it is never uploaded), checks every row against the statement’s balances, and gives you the OFX file. A password-protected PDF works too: you type the password, and it is used only on your computer.

Prefer a CSV? The bank statement to CSV converter also offers the Xero layout. Already have a bank CSV that Xero won’t accept? Convert it to OFX and skip the column rules.

Common problems

Days and months are swapped

When a CSV’s dates could be read either way, Xero asks which format they are in, then uses your answer for every future CSV in that account. If you picked wrong, delete the imported statement lines and import again. An OFX file avoids this: its dates are always year, month, day.

The balance looks wrong after a CSV import

A balance column was left in the file and mapped to something else, or debit and credit were in separate columns. Delete the balance column and put every amount in one signed column.

Some lines didn’t import

The review screen splits lines into ready, warnings and errors. Fix the lines with errors in the file and import them again; lines Xero already has are skipped as duplicates.

Import a Statement is missing

Your Xero user role doesn’t allow it. Ask an adviser on the organisation to give you bank account access.

Once the lines are in, reconcile them in Xero as usual. Keeping a spreadsheet as well? Our reconciliation template does the check by hand.

Questions

Sources

Read on 6 October 2026. Software changes its menus often; if a step here no longer matches what you see, please tell us at hello@safebankstatementconverter.com and we will fix it.

1. Xero Central: About manually importing bank transactions
2. Xero Central: Import a bank statement in CSV format
3. Xero Central: Import a PDF bank statement
4. Xero Central: Import a QIF bank statement
5. Xero Central: Connect your bank to Xero