As an alternative to setting up a bank feed for auto-import of bank account transactions, you may manually import a bank transactions CSV file that you download from your online banking or create yourself.
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Required file format
At this time, Flare allows you to import CSV files (comma separated values). The CSV file must have a header row (with field names). The minimum required fields are Transaction Date, Amount, and Description in the order shown below.
Example transactions CSV file:
Field formats
Date
Format: mm/dd/yyyy
Example: 07/22/2015 for July 22, 2015.
Amount
A positive number (credit) or negative number (debit) without a thousandth's separate (i.e. a comma), to two decimal places when required, and without a dollar sign ($).
Amount examples:
30
-30
30.45
-30.45
250
250.56
1200
1200.35
12375
12375.75
Description
When downloading bank transaction files the description field may contain the type of transaction or other reference number. If you are creating your own transaction file, the description field limit is 255 characters after which text will be truncated.
Correcting transaction file format from transactions files you download from your bank
Fix the most common bank account transactions file formatting problems:
Column order is incorrect
If the order of columns is different than Flare's required transactions file format, in Excel, move columns by selecting the cell to move (1 below) then selecting where you'd like to paste it. Then, right click and select "Insert Cut Cells" (2). In the example below, the Description column heading is incorrectly to the left of the Amount column heading. As per Flare's required CSV format, the Amount column comes before the Description column.
Select and Cut cell to move:
Select the column where you'd like to paste the cell then "Insert Cut Cells":
The Amount column has been moved to the left of the Description column. Now all that is required are column headings "Transaction Date", "Amount", and "Description". The corrected column order and headings are shown in the example below:
Credits and debits are in separate columns
If credits (deposits) and debits (payments) are in separate columns, you'll have to move the debit column values into the same column as credits, ensuring debit values begin with a "-" sign. The example below demonstrates the removal of a header row and the moving of debits into the same column as credits.
To alter this file so it meets Flare's transactions file format requirements, you would:
- Delete the header row (1 above).
- Move debits over to the Credit row (2 and 3).
- Delete the Debit column.
- Add the correct column heading row with headings"Transaction Date", "Amount", and "Description" as shown below.
- In Excel, choose Save As > CSV.
Incorrect date format
If the date format is not mm/dd/yyyy as required by Flare, in Excel do the following:
- Select the date column (1 below). Right click and choose Format Cells (2 below).
- Choose (3 below) and in the Type text box enter: mm/dd/yyyy (4).
Excel shows you a sample of the date.
- Click (5 above).
Check the file to ensure the date format has been converted to mm/dd/yyyy.
Importing a bank account transactions CSV file
To import a bank transactions file, do the following:
- Log into your online banking.
- Select an account. In this example, we'll select Checking.
- Look for "Export" or "Download". Select CSV (the preferred format) XLS, or XLSX.
- Download the file.
- Open the file and ensure the format is correct.
- (1 and 2 below).
- Click in Flare's main menu (3 below), click the (4) and click the where you'll import transactions (5).
- Click the (6 below).
A file browser window will open. - Click (7 below) and browse for the transactions file.
- Double-click the file name or click the Open button (8 below).
Flare will import the file. If the bank transactions file import was successful, you will see the alert "Your transactions imported successfully!" displayed at the right corner of Flare's top menu (shown below).
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