LedgermereQuickBooks Online CSV format for bank transaction uploads
QuickBooks Online accepts a bank CSV in only two layouts, and the file must be in English, at most 350 KB and at most 1,000 lines per upload. Here is how to shape a bank export so it goes in the first time.
Updated 2026-10-26 · 5 min read
The two accepted layouts
3 columns – Date, Description, Amount (money out negative):
| Date | Description | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| 01/14/2026 | Hardware store | -42.50 |
| 01/15/2026 | Customer payment | 1200.00 |
4 columns – Date, Description, Credit, Debit. Intuit's own example puts money in and money out in separate columns and leaves the other one blank (not 0). Use the column mapping step during upload to confirm which column is which.
Rules from Intuit's help
- English, 350 KB or less; up to 1,000 lines per upload.
- Leave amount cells that would be 0 blank.
- Remove the word “amount” from the Credit/Debit headers.
- One date format for every row (Intuit recommends dd/mm/yyyy for non-US regions; use your company's format consistently).
- If the bank puts the weekday in the date (“20/11/2018 TUE”), split it off.
- Mac users: save as a Windows CSV.
- An amount with 12 or more digits is rejected.
Step by step
- Download the CSV from the bank (or open the PDF/Excel statement in Ledgermere).
- Reduce it to the 3- or 4-column layout; delete balance columns and summary rows.
- Split files with more than 1,000 transactions.
- In QuickBooks Online: Bank transactions › Link account ▾ › Upload from file, choose the account, map the columns, select the transactions and finish.
Ledgermere's QuickBooks Online CSV export does steps 2–3 for you: it writes either layout and splits automatically at 1,000 rows / 350 KB.
Consider .QBO instead of CSV
A Web Connect .qbo file needs no column mapping and carries a transaction ID per line. Intuit's help suggests QBO as the preferred upload type. Ledgermere can export either.
Note: QuickBooks Online now reads PDF statements
Intuit's help says you can also upload an account statement as a PDF or image, as long as it is in English. If that works for your statements, you may not need a converter at all. Converters are still useful for non-English statements, MT940/camt/BAI2 bank files, merging many files, or QuickBooks Desktop.
Try it with your own file. Ledgermere converts PDF/CSV/Excel statements, OFX/QFX/QBO, QIF, MT940, camt.053, BAI2 and Norma 43 to QBO, QFX, IIF, QuickBooks Online CSV, Xero CSV, OFX, QIF, CSV or Excel – in your browser, nothing is uploaded. The free version exports the first 20 transactions so you can test the import first; a 30-day pass is $9, lifetime $29.
Questions and answers
Why does QuickBooks say my file is too large?
Uploads are limited to 350 KB. Split the file by date range or use a converter that splits automatically.
Can I upload more than 90 days of transactions?
Yes. Manual uploads are not limited to 90 days; split them into files of up to 1,000 lines.
My credit card shows payments as purchases
Credit-card CSVs often use the opposite sign. Pick the credit card account when uploading, or flip the sign before you export.
Sources and product names: Intuit help "Manually upload transactions into QuickBooks Online", "Format CSV files in Excel to get bank transactions into QuickBooks" and "Fix bank upload errors" (checked 2026-10-26). QuickBooks and Quicken are trademarks of Intuit Inc. or Quicken Inc.; Xero is a trademark of Xero Limited. Ledgermere is independent and not affiliated with them.