Bank Reconciliation

Work through a bank statement and decide which movements are already recorded and which still need an entry.

Bank reconciliation is unavailable in the Free edition. It uses imported statement files, rather than a live bank feed.

Watch the bank reconciliation training video, or follow the written guide below.

Import the statement

Export your bank's transaction history as a CSV for the period you want to reconcile. A monthly routine helps keep the work manageable. Continue from where your previous export ended, checking that there are no gaps or overlapping transactions.

Choose Bank statement under Import & Data, or use the import option in Accounting & Finances. Select the money account the statement belongs to.

Prepare a CSV with these columns in this order:

Date,Amount,Balance,Description
2026-09-01,-250.00,9750.00,Monthly bank charge

Bank export formats vary. If necessary, adjust the file in a spreadsheet and save it as a comma-separated CSV with the headings above. PiggyZen ignores introductory rows before it finds the matching header; the header must contain these four columns in this order.

Use dates in YYYY-MM-DD format and a decimal point for numbers. Money leaving the account is negative; money received is positive. Keep the Balance column. See file preparation for the shared CSV rules.

Importing the statement adds records to be processed. It does not itself create income, expenses or other accounting entries.

Check the import result and any errors before continuing. If only some rows were imported, correct and import the missing rows rather than uploading the whole statement again.

Compare each record

In Accounting & Finances, select the same money account and choose Process Imported Records. PiggyZen displays one statement record at a time, with its date, amount, balance and description.

The remaining-record count shows your progress. View imported recs to process opens the list of outstanding statement records.

The existing-transactions list helps you find an entry already made. You can look within 1, 3, 5 or 10 days of the statement date, and restrict the list to the same amount or show all amounts. Refresh after changing the search.

A similar date and amount are clues, not proof of a match. Check the description and transaction before skipping it, especially when several payments have the same amount.

Choose what the movement represents

• Already recorded: verify the existing entry, then use Skip - Already Added. This marks the statement record as processed without making another accounting entry.
• Money out: the available actions include Expense, Salary Payment, Loan Payment, Payroll Liabilities Payment and Sales Tax Payment.
• Money in: choose Income for a new income entry, or Account Payment for money received against a customer's existing balance.
• Transfer: use this for movement between your own accounts. After recording it once, the corresponding record on the other bank statement should be checked and skipped as already recorded.

Selecting an action opens its entry screen. Supported forms carry across the statement's date, amount, description and bank account. Review those values and supply the remaining details, such as the expense account, customer, employee or other side of a transfer. Completing the linked entry marks the statement record as processed and returns you to the next one.

If the payment settles a bill already entered, use the bill payment workflow, then return and skip the statement record once verified. Recording another expense would count the purchase twice.

Pause to record something else

While reconciliation is active, supported entry screens can automatically use the current statement record. Before entering an unrelated transaction, use the pause icon in the Bank reconciliation in progress panel. This reloads the entry screen without the statement details and leaves the current statement record unprocessed.

To resume, return to Accounting & Finances, select the bank account and choose Process Imported Records again. PiggyZen continues with the outstanding records.

Finish with a balance check

Work through the remaining records, then compare the account's ledger balance with the bank statement for the same date. A processed record means you dealt with that statement line; it is not an automatic guarantee that the account balances agree.

Use the Ledger Account Statement with a brought-forward balance to investigate missing entries, duplicates or date differences.

If the ending balances differ, compare the opening balances first, then work forward to find where the running balances first diverge.

Bank reconciliation training video

Follow an example of exporting a bank statement, importing it, processing transactions and pausing reconciliation.

This video shows an older version of PiggyZen. The main workflow is still similar, but screens and menu labels may differ. Use the written guide above for the current options and edition availability.

Watch the bank reconciliation training video on YouTube. The embedded player is provided by YouTube and connects to YouTube when loaded.