Import a bank-statement CSV into Xero
ProofRows extracts the transactions from a bank-statement PDF — text-based or scanned (OCR built in), lets you review every row, and exports a Xero-ready CSV with the exact column order Xero's bank-import wizard expects. A direct Xero API push is on the roadmap.
What ProofRows does (and does not do) for Xero
ProofRows is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or partnered with Xero. We do not use Xero marks in a way that suggests partnership.
- ProofRows exports a Xero-ready CSV. The CSV imports through Accounting → Bank accounts → Manage account → Import a statement. The column order is exact: Date, Amount, Payee, Description, Reference.
- Direct API push to Xero is on the roadmap. The OAuth scaffolding is in place. Today, the export file is the wire — five clicks in Xero.
- ProofRows is not a Xero replacement. It does not store a chart of accounts, post journal entries, or maintain a general ledger.
How the import works
End-to-end: PDF → reviewed CSV → Xero.
- 01Upload the PDF
Drop the bank-statement PDF into ProofRows. Text-based PDFs are supported today.
- 02Review the transactions
Click any row, the source line highlights. Resolve the low-confidence flags. Validate the balance check.
- 03Export a Xero-ready CSV
Pick the Xero format. Pick your date format (YYYY-MM-DD recommended). Click Download.
- 04Import in Xero
Accounting → Bank accounts → pick the bank account → Manage account → Import a statement. Drag the CSV in.
- 05Confirm column mapping
Xero should auto-detect the columns. Confirm the date format. Save.
- 06Reconcile
The transactions appear in Reconcile. Match each one or create a new entry.
Step-by-step walkthrough: /guides/import-to-xero.
Column layout that matches the Xero wizard
Your chosen format. YYYY-MM-DD is unambiguous and recommended.
Always signed. Positive = money in, negative = money out. The debit / credit toggle has no effect on Xero exports.
ProofRows's normalized vendor when available, raw bank description otherwise.
Always the raw bank description, exactly as it appeared on the statement.
Left blank in v1 — we don't extract check numbers yet.
Xero rejects files with extra columns. ProofRows drops the optional Status and Confidence columns from the Xero-ready CSV.
Tips and gotchas
- Always review before reconciling. Xero shows each line in the Reconcile screen before it hits your ledger. Verify a sample matches the statement.
- Duplicates from bank feeds. If your Xero org has a live bank feed and you import the same period from a CSV, you’ll see duplicates. Either disable the feed first or delete the overlap before importing.
- Date format matters. If Xero complains about date format, re-export with YYYY-MM-DD.
Ready to import your first statement?
Stop retyping bank statements into Xero.
Upload a PDF — text or scanned — and get a Xero-ready CSV back. 150 free pages, no card required.
Frequently asked questions
- Can ProofRows convert bank statement PDFs to CSV?
- Yes. ProofRows extracts transactions from bank-statement PDFs — text-based or scanned — and lets bookkeepers review, edit, validate, and export the results as CSV. The QuickBooks-ready and Xero-ready CSV profiles import cleanly into those tools through their native bank-import wizards.
- Does ProofRows work with scanned bank statements?
- Yes. Scanned and image-only statements are read with built-in OCR, then parsed into transactions the same way as text PDFs. Low-confidence rows from rough scans are flagged for review, and every statement still has to pass the balance check before export.
- Can I import ProofRows exports into QuickBooks?
- ProofRows exports QuickBooks-ready CSV (for the Banking → Upload from file wizard) and .qbo Web Connect files that QuickBooks Online and Desktop import natively. A direct QuickBooks Online API push is on the roadmap and should not be described as live yet. ProofRows is not affiliated with or endorsed by Intuit.
- Can I import ProofRows exports into Xero?
- ProofRows exports a Xero-ready CSV that supports Xero's bank-import workflow (Accounting → Bank accounts → Import a statement). A direct Xero API push is on the roadmap. ProofRows is not affiliated with or endorsed by Xero.
- Does ProofRows export to Excel (XLSX)?
- Yes — XLSX export is supported today. CSV files produced by ProofRows also open cleanly in Microsoft Excel, Apple Numbers, and Google Sheets.
- Is ProofRows a replacement for bookkeeping software?
- No. ProofRows is a statement-cleanup workspace. It prepares transaction data for import or reconciliation in accounting tools like QuickBooks Online or Xero. It is not a ledger of record.
- Who is ProofRows built for?
- ProofRows is built for solo bookkeepers, small bookkeeping firms, accountants, tax preparers, QuickBooks ProAdvisors, cleanup bookkeeping specialists, and fractional CFOs who receive bank statements as PDFs.
- How long do you keep my client's bank statements?
- Source PDFs are auto-deleted after the per-client retention window (default 30 days, configurable). The extracted transactions and export-log audit trail stay for the life of the account. Account deletion cascades and removes every row, file, and auth artifact in a single transaction.
- Do you train AI models on my client's bank statements?
- No. We do not train models on customer data. The extraction provider we use is contracted not to train on API requests, and our application does not write statement text back to the database from the model — the only path through is a strict schema validation.
- How accurate is the extraction?
- Confidence scores are surfaced per row so the bookkeeper can see which transactions the model is less sure about. The validation page enforces a beginning + Σ credits − Σ debits = ending balance check before any export. We do not claim 'perfect AI extraction' — every export is human-reviewed.
More questions? Contact support or read the full FAQ.