The short answer
File type: CSV. Required columns: Date, Description, Amount. No optional column is listed. The converter on this site writes a file with the header Date,Description,Amount.
These rules were read on 5 October 2026 from QuickBooks Online's own help page, named at the end of this page. Vendors change import rules without notice, so compare with the vendor's page before you rely on a detail.
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Required and optional columns
| Column | Required by QuickBooks Online | In the file this site writes |
|---|---|---|
| Date | required | yes |
| Description | required | yes |
| Amount | required | yes |
| Credit | only in the 4-column layout | no |
| Debit | only in the 4-column layout | no |
3-column layout: Date, Description, Amount. The vendor's example row: 1/1/2018,Example of a payment,-100.00
4-column layout: Date, Description, Credit, Debit. The vendor's example row: 1/1/2018,Example of a deposit,200.00,
Date and amount conventions
| Rule | What applies to QuickBooks Online |
|---|---|
| File type | CSV |
| Header row | yes, with the column names of one of the two layouts |
| Dates, on the vendor's page | one consistent format; the global edition of the page recommends dd/mm/yyyy, and its example rows use 1/1/2018 |
| Dates, in the file this site writes | DD/MM/YYYY, for example 04/03/2024. The converter writes dd/mm/yyyy as the fetched page recommends and offers mm/dd/yyyy as an option, because QuickBooks reads dates according to the company's region. The US edition of the page could not be fetched on the checked date. |
| Amounts, on the vendor's page | 3-column layout: one signed Amount column, a payment is negative (the vendor's example payment is -100.00). 4-column layout: separate Credit and Debit columns. |
| Amounts, in the file this site writes | A single signed Amount column: money out is written as a negative number, money in as a positive number. |
| Header of the file this site writes | Date,Description,Amount |
From the vendor's help page: "QuickBooks accepts CSVs with either the 3-column or 4-column format": Date, Description, Amount; or Date, Description, Credit, Debit.
A worked example of 3 rows
Invented sample data. These 3 rows were made up for this page. They are not from a real statement and hold no real account, name or balance.
The file the converter on this site writes for QuickBooks Online from a bank file that has a date, a payee, a memo, a reference and an amount. Dates are written as DD/MM/YYYY.
Date,Description,Amount 04/03/2024,Coffee Corner - Card purchase,-4.50 05/03/2024,Example Co - Salary March,2500.00 07/03/2024,Sample Landlord - Standing order,-1234.56
- Row 1: 4 March 2024, 4.50 of money out. In the file: Date 04/03/2024, Amount -4.50.
- Row 2: 5 March 2024, 2500.00 of money in. In the file: Date 05/03/2024, Amount 2500.00.
- Row 3: 7 March 2024, 1234.56 of money out. In the file: Date 07/03/2024, Amount -1234.56.
The payee, memo and reference of each bank row go to the text columns this layout has; what has no column in it is left out.
Common import errors
Each line pairs a mistake with the rule above that it breaks. This page does not quote QuickBooks Online's own error messages.
| What goes wrong | The QuickBooks Online rule behind it |
|---|---|
| A required column is missing or cannot be matched | Required columns: Date, Description, Amount. |
| The first row is read the wrong way: a header taken as a transaction, or a transaction taken as a header | Header row: yes, with the column names of one of the two layouts. |
| Dates are refused or read as another day | Dates: one consistent format; the global edition of the page recommends dd/mm/yyyy, and its example rows use 1/1/2018. |
| Money out arrives as money in, or an amount lands in the wrong column | 3-column layout: one signed Amount column, a payment is negative (the vendor's example payment is -100.00). 4-column layout: separate Credit and Debit columns. |
Also stated on QuickBooks Online's help page
- Remove any zeroes (0) from the file and leave those cells blank.
- Remove the word 'amount' if it appears in the Credit or Debit column header.
- Remove the day of the week from dates (for example 20/11/2018 TUE).
- Correct any transactions that display numbers in the Description column.
- Mac users must save the file as a Windows CSV file.
- CSV files for credit card accounts may display transactions in reverse order.
Bank by bank: 40 CSV exports to QuickBooks Online
One page per bank layout, each with the column mapping from that bank's CSV to the QuickBooks Online file. The layouts come from public open-source importer files kept by volunteers, not from the banks.
United States (11)
- Chase
- Chase credit card
- Bank of America checking
- Bank of America credit card
- Wells Fargo checking
- Citi
- Capital One credit card
- USAA
- Charles Schwab checking
- Fidelity cash management account
- State Employees' Credit Union (NC SECU)
Canada (11)
- TD Canada Trust
- Royal Bank of Canada (RBC)
- Scotiabank chequing
- Scotiabank credit card
- CIBC
- Tangerine
- Simplii Financial
- Desjardins
- Capital One Canada
- American Express Canada
- Wealthsimple
United Kingdom (10)
- Monzo
- Starling Bank
- Barclays
- Barclaycard
- Lloyds Bank
- Halifax
- MBNA
- Tesco Bank
- Marcus by Goldman Sachs
- John Lewis Partnership Card (NewDay)
Australia (5)
United Kingdom and EU (1)
International (2)
Source documents
The official QuickBooks Online help page "Format CSV files in Excel to get bank transactions into QuickBooks", at quickbooks.intuit.com/learn-support/en-global/help-article/bank-transactions/format-csv-files-excel-bank-transactions-quickbooks/L4BjLWckq_ROW_en (named as text, not linked). How it was read on 5 October 2026: page fetched (global edition). The official page was fetched and read on the checked date.
Import rules of four accounting and budgeting apps, taken from each vendor's own help pages. This project is not affiliated with or endorsed by YNAB, Intuit/QuickBooks, Xero or Wave; the names are trademarks of their owners. Vendors change import rules without notice.