How-to · OFX and QFX
Convert an OFX or QFX file to CSV or Excel
An OFX or QFX file is a bank download made for Quicken or QuickBooks®. It is plain text, so a spreadsheet can't use it as it is. Pennyrow reads it in your browser, turns every transaction into a row and gives you CSV or Excel. The file is read on your device and never uploaded.
What an OFX or QFX file is
OFX (Open Financial Exchange) is a plain text format for bank and card transactions. QFX is the version made for Quicken. Many banks offer one next to their CSV download. Pennyrow looks inside the file instead of going by its name, so a file saved as .ofx, .qfx or .qbo reads the same way when OFX is inside.
Steps
- Download the OFX or QFX file from your bank's transaction download, with a date range for the whole year if it lets you. Look for the words Quicken, QFX, QBO or Web Connect in the format menu.
- Open Pennyrow and drop in the file. You can add several files, from several banks, together with PDF statements.
- Check the badge on the Statements tab, then the Catch-up tab for duplicates and transfers.
- On Export choose Excel (.xlsx) or CSV. Your browser saves the file to your device.
Banks that name this download
These banks' help pages name a Quicken, QFX, QBO or Web Connect download. The menu names change, so follow the bank's guide here for the steps and the bank's own page for the current ones.
- Wells Fargo: Quicken (QFX).
- Citi: Quicken and other formats.
- American Express: Quicken and QuickBooks.
- U.S. Bank: CSV, Quicken (QFX) or QuickBooks (QBO).
- PNC: Quicken (QFX) or QuickBooks (QBO); Excel, Quicken or QuickBooks (credit cards).
- Ally Bank: CSV or Quicken (QFX).
- Citizens Bank: Quicken or QuickBooks (Web Connect).
Checked October 13, 2026 against each bank's help page. Banks move menus around; the help page has the current steps.
What Pennyrow reads from the file
- The date, the amount and the name and memo of each transaction. When the memo adds to the name, Pennyrow joins them into one description.
- A bank account uses the date the bank posted the transaction. A card uses the purchase date when the file has one.
- A negative amount is money out and a positive one is money in. In the CSV they go into separate columns, Money in and Money out, and both are positive numbers.
- If a file holds more than one account, each account is read as its own statement.
Why it says “No balances to check”
An OFX or QFX file lists transactions and usually gives a closing balance. The files we checked have no opening balance, so there is nothing to add up and the statement shows “No balances to check”. The rows are still read, and the other checks still run across your files: missing months, duplicates and transfers between your own accounts.
Worked example
This is the part of a made-up OFX file that holds the transactions. The bank and the merchants are invented.
<STMTTRN> <TRNTYPE>DEBIT <DTPOSTED>20261003120000 <TRNAMT>-42.18 <FITID>2026100301 <NAME>SUNRISE GROCERY #0042 <MEMO>DEBIT CARD PURCHASE </STMTTRN> <STMTTRN> <TRNTYPE>CREDIT <DTPOSTED>20261007120000 <TRNAMT>1250.00 <FITID>2026100702 <NAME>BRIGHTLEAF MEDIA <MEMO>ACH DEPOSIT </STMTTRN> <STMTTRN> <TRNTYPE>FEE <DTPOSTED>20261015120000 <TRNAMT>-12.00 <FITID>2026101503 <NAME>MONTHLY SERVICE FEE </STMTTRN>
This is what Pennyrow puts in the CSV:
| Date | Description | Money in | Money out |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-10-03 | SUNRISE GROCERY #0042 DEBIT CARD PURCHASE | 42.18 | |
| 2026-10-07 | BRIGHTLEAF MEDIA ACH DEPOSIT | 1250.00 | |
| 2026-10-15 | MONTHLY SERVICE FEE | 12.00 |
The dates come out year-month-day and the amounts as plain numbers, so a spreadsheet can sort them straight away. The CSV has ten more columns, among them Account, Category, Schedule C line and Source file.
Limits
Pennyrow reads US dollar accounts. A file in another currency gets a warning. A download that looks cut off gets a warning too, because some transactions may be missing; download it again from your bank.
Questions
What is the difference between OFX and QFX?
Both are plain text transaction files. QFX is the version made for Quicken. Pennyrow reads both the same way.
Why does my OFX file show “No balances to check”?
In the files we checked there is a closing balance and no opening balance, so the statement can't be added up. The rows are still read, and Pennyrow still looks for duplicates, missing months and transfers across your files.
Does Pennyrow upload my OFX file?
No. The file is read inside your browser tab. The converter page is locked so it can't make network requests. How to check that yourself.
Does Pennyrow make a QBO file for QuickBooks?
Not yet. For QuickBooks Online use the bank CSV export; for QuickBooks Desktop use the .iif export. Pennyrow can also export an OFX file.
My file has two accounts in it. What happens?
Each account is read as its own statement, so each gets its own badge and its own sheet in the Excel file.
Related
- How to catch up on a year of bookkeeping yourself
- How to get a bank statement PDF into Google Sheets
- Export a year of Apple Card transactions to one spreadsheet
Bank guides: Wells Fargo · U.S. Bank · Ally Bank · all banks