Xero Bank Statement Converter for PDF to OFX and CSV Xero Imports

Upload the statements Xero's own PDF import turns away: scans, phone photos, long statements and banks outside its validated list. You get an OFX file, the format Xero recommends, that imports through Import a Statement with no column mapping, plus CSV and Excel copies for your workpapers.

OFX, CSV and Excel output

Reads scans and phone photos

Test 15 pages, no credit card

256-bit encryption

PDF, JPG, PNG, BMP, HEIC, TIFF

Upload your bank statement

Extract:

| Balances

| Split Debit/Credit

Convert bank statement →

The short answer

Xero organizations in the United States and Canada can import some PDF bank statements directly, but only clean files: at least 200 DPI, scanned straight, in English, 100 pages or fewer, not password protected, and not on the Xero Ledger plan. Xero itself recommends OFX over PDF. For anything else, convert the statement to OFX here and import it under Accounting, Bank accounts, Import a Statement. The OFX carries signed amounts and dates in a fixed format, so there is nothing to map.

When Xero's PDF import is not enough

Xero added PDF statement import for US and Canadian organizations, and for a digital statement from one of the banks on its validated list it often works. Xero is open about where it stops. Its help article lists the requirements a file has to meet, warns that results from banks it has not validated "might vary", and still tells you to use OFX whenever the bank offers it. The jobs bookkeepers actually get stuck on sit outside those limits: a client's phone photos of paper statements, an old scan at 150 DPI, a merchant account whose monthly statement runs past 100 pages, or a firm on the Xero Ledger plan where PDF import is not available at all.

OFX, the format Xero recommends

Each transaction lands with a posting date, a signed amount, the payee text and a unique ID. Xero reads it through Import a Statement with no column mapping and no date-order question.

Scans and photos read with OCR

Low-resolution scans, slanted pages and JPG, PNG or HEIC photos of paper statements go through the same extraction as a digital PDF, which is where most old history lives.

A file you keep

The same upload gives you CSV and Excel copies of every line. Keep them with the engagement file, check totals before you touch the ledger, and re-import from the OFX if a reconciliation has to be redone.

Xero PDF import vs converting to OFX first

The middle column is taken from Xero Central's article on importing a PDF bank statement. Where Xero's own import fits your file, use it. Where it does not, the right column is what changes.

Situation	Xero PDF import	Convert here, import the OFX
Clean digital PDF from a validated bank	Works; review the lines, then complete the import	Works too; worth it mainly when you also want a CSV or Excel copy
Scan below 200 DPI, or crooked pages	Not supported; slanted scans can return an error	Read with OCR
Phone photos (JPG, PNG, HEIC)	Not a PDF, so not accepted	Accepted as uploads
Statement longer than 100 pages	Over Xero's per-statement maximum	No per-statement page cap on Plus; Starter reads up to 25 pages per statement
Bank not on Xero's validated list	Allowed, but Xero says accuracy might vary	Same extraction for every bank; check the rows before export
Organization on the Xero Ledger plan	PDF import not available	OFX goes through Import a Statement as usual
Fifty statements for a catch-up client	One file per account per import	Bulk upload of up to 50 files at once on Plus

Xero's article also asks for files that are 35 MB or less, no larger than 40 inches (2,880 points) on either side, a debit or credit statement rather than another document, and not password protected. You need the administrator, standard plus bank accounts, or cashbook client role to import a statement at all.

Which file format to import into Xero

Import a Statement accepts OFX, QFX, QuickBooks, QIF and CSV files, plus PDF for US and Canadian organizations. This converter writes OFX, CSV and Excel. That covers the format Xero recommends and the one you edit by hand, which is all a PDF statement needs.

Format	What Xero needs	Effort to import	From this converter
OFX	A structured statement file. Xero recommends it over every other format.	Lowest, no mapping	Yes
CSV	Date and Amount at minimum, income and expenses in one signed Amount column, US dates as MM/DD/YYYY, under 100,000 rows.	Medium, with column mapping	Yes, with the statement's own columns
QFX and QuickBooks files	OFX variants some US banks issue for Quicken and QuickBooks.	Lowest, no mapping	No; export OFX instead, Xero reads it the same way
QIF	An older text format with no transaction IDs.	Low	No; OFX is the better file anyway
PDF	US and Canada only, within the limits above, not on Xero Ledger.	Low when the file qualifies	This is the input, along with scans and photos

If your bank's portal offers OFX or QFX for the period you need, download it; the data arrives already structured. When all you have is the PDF, convert the PDF statement to OFX rather than CSV unless you want to edit rows first. For a CSV-first workflow on any target, the PDF bank statement to CSV converter explains how the columns are built, and the scanned bank statement to OFX converter covers paper statements in more depth.

If you import a CSV into Xero instead

Xero's CSV import wants income and expenses in one Amount column, income positive and expenses negative, with dates that match the organization's region. The converted CSV keeps the columns the way the statement prints them, so check a few things before you upload.

Choose Transactions only before converting, so the file holds the transaction table under one header row
If the statement prints Withdrawals and Deposits in two columns, add one Amount column (deposits minus withdrawals) in Excel
Dates stay as the statement prints them; US statements are month first, which is what a US organization expects
A statement that prints the year only in its header may list dates without one; add the year before upload
Or skip all of this and export OFX, which already has signed amounts and full dates

The CSV shape Xero maps most easily

Date	Description	Amount
03/04/2026	ACH Deposit Acme LLC	1450.00
03/06/2026	Card Purchase Staples	-86.20
03/09/2026	Monthly Service Fee	-15.00

The converter's Split Debit/Credit option works the other way round: it turns a single Amount column into separate Debit and Credit columns for tools that want them. For Xero, leave it off.

How to import a PDF bank statement into Xero with OFX

Four steps, no software to install.

Upload the statement

Drop the PDF, scan or photo into the converter at the top of this page. Checking, savings, money market and credit card statements all work.

Check the rows

Compare dates, amounts and signs against the PDF, and confirm the closing balance matches the last page.

Download OFX

Export the statement as OFX. Take CSV or Excel as well if you want a copy for the working papers.

Import a Statement

In Xero choose Accounting, Bank accounts, click the menu icon for the account, then Import a Statement, and upload the OFX.

Import one statement period per file and keep the periods from overlapping. Xero says it recognizes transactions already imported from other files and leaves them out, but clean, non-overlapping periods make the reconciliation screen far easier to read. The longer walk-through is in our post on importing bank statements into Xero.

Who uses the Xero bank statement converter

Bookkeepers on Xero

Clients forward scans, photos and statements from banks Xero has not validated. Convert the lot and post the months without retyping a line.

Firms on Xero Ledger

PDF import is not available on the Ledger plan, so OFX through Import a Statement is the route for statement-only clients.

Catch-up and cleanup work

A year or more of statements for a client who never connected a feed, uploaded 50 files at a time on Plus.

High-volume accounts

Merchant and operating accounts whose monthly statements run past Xero's 100-page limit.

What goes into the OFX file

Each export is an OFX file with the account number and type read from the statement, and one transaction record per line holding the type, posting date, signed amount, a unique transaction ID and the payee text. Dates are written as YYYYMMDD, so Xero never has to guess day and month order. When the statement prints a closing balance, it goes into the file too, which gives you the figure to reconcile against.

Signed amounts: money in positive, money out negative
Credit card statements written as card statements
The same statement converted twice gets the same transaction IDs
CSV and Excel from the same upload for review

What it costs

Test up to 15 pages with no credit card. Starter is $49 a month for 2,500 pages on the faster AI model, up to 25 pages per statement, which covers a year of statements for several typical accounts. Plus adds bulk upload of up to 50 files and removes the per-statement page cap for long merchant statements. See pricing for the current plans. If you also enter vendor bills in Xero, you can pull the line items off those documents with an invoice OCR tool, and turn any other report PDF into a spreadsheet with a PDF to Excel converter.

OFX for Xero CSV Excel .xlsx Scans and photos Bulk upload on Plus

Xero bank statement converter FAQ

Can Xero import a PDF bank statement?

Yes, for Xero organizations in the United States and Canada, within limits. The PDF must be at least 200 DPI, scanned straight, in English, 100 pages or fewer, 35 MB or less and not password protected, and the feature is not available on the Xero Ledger plan. Xero still recommends OFX over PDF. Files outside those limits convert to OFX here.

How do I import a bank statement into Xero?

In Xero, open the Accounting menu, select Bank accounts, click the menu icon for the account and choose Import a Statement. Upload an OFX, QFX, QIF, CSV or qualifying PDF file, review the lines and complete the import. From a PDF statement, convert to OFX first when the file does not meet Xero's PDF requirements.

What columns does the Xero CSV import need?

Only Date and Amount are required. Income and expenses go in the same Amount column, income positive and expenses negative, and dates must match the organization's region, which is MM/DD/YYYY in the US. A CSV can hold up to 100,000 rows. A Description column makes reconciliation much easier.

Should I import a CSV or an OFX into Xero?

Import OFX. Xero recommends it over QIF, QFX, CSV and PDF, and an OFX file carries signed amounts and fixed-format dates, so there is no mapping screen. Having only a PDF is not a reason to drop to CSV, because the converter writes OFX straight from the statement. Pick CSV when you want to edit rows first.

Why does Xero reject my PDF bank statement?

Usually because the file breaks one of Xero's PDF rules: a scan under 200 DPI, a crooked or slanted page, more than 100 pages, a password, or a document that is not a debit or credit statement. PDF import is also missing on the Xero Ledger plan. Converting the statement to OFX avoids all of those checks.

Why does Xero reject my CSV bank statement?

The usual causes are dates that do not match the organization's region, withdrawals and deposits in two columns instead of one signed Amount column, text lines above the header row, or more than 100,000 rows. Export OFX to sidestep all four, or pick Transactions only and build one Amount column before uploading the CSV.

Can I convert a scanned or image-only statement?

Yes. The converter reads scanned statements, image-only PDFs and JPG, PNG, HEIC or TIFF photos with OCR, including low-resolution and slightly crooked scans that Xero's own PDF import turns away. The transactions come out in the same OFX, CSV and Excel formats as a digital statement.

How much does it cost to convert statements for Xero?

You can test up to 15 pages with no credit card. Starter is $49 a month for 2,500 pages on the faster AI model, up to 25 pages per statement. Plus adds bulk upload of 50 files at a time and has no per-statement page cap, which suits bookkeepers catching up several Xero clients.

Base AI Faster	10,000 pages
Pro AI Best accuracy	2,000 pages