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Not every account connects via Plaid. Your local credit union might not be supported. Your foreign business account definitely isn’t. And good luck connecting your petty cash drawer. Manual accounts let you track these in Pluvel anyway. Import transactions via CSV or enter them by hand. Same categorization, same reports, same reconciliation — just without the automatic sync.

When you need a manual account

  • Banks not supported by Plaid
  • Foreign bank accounts
  • Investment accounts
  • Petty cash
  • PayPal or Stripe (if you prefer CSV over integration)
  • Loan accounts

Creating a manual account

1

Go to Banking

Navigate to Banking → Accounts.
2

Click Add Account

Select Add Manual Account.
3

Enter details

Fill in:
  • Account name
  • Account type (checking, savings, credit card, etc.)
  • Starting balance
  • As-of date
4

Save

The account appears in your account list.

Importing transactions

CSV import

Import transactions from a downloaded bank statement:
  1. Open the manual account
  2. Click Import Transactions
  3. Upload your CSV file
  4. Map columns to fields (date, description, amount)
  5. Review the import preview
  6. Confirm import

Supported formats

  • CSV (comma-separated)
  • Excel (.xlsx)
  • OFX/QFX (from many banks)
  • QBO (QuickBooks format)
If your bank offers a download option, it probably works.

Column mapping

Map your file’s columns to Pluvel fields:
Pluvel fieldYour column might be called
DateTransaction Date, Posted Date
DescriptionDescription, Memo, Payee
AmountAmount, Debit/Credit
ReferenceCheck Number, Reference
For files with separate debit and credit columns, select both. We’ll figure it out.

Manual entry

When you only have a few transactions (or for petty cash):
  1. Open the account
  2. Click Add Transaction
  3. Enter:
    • Date
    • Description
    • Amount (positive for deposits, negative for withdrawals)
    • Category (optional)
  4. Save

Updating balances

For manual accounts, update the balance periodically to catch discrepancies:
  1. Open the account
  2. Click Update Balance
  3. Enter current balance and as-of date
  4. Any difference creates a reconciliation adjustment
Update manual account balances at least monthly. Finding a 50discrepancyisannoying.Findinga50 discrepancy is annoying. Finding a 500 discrepancy from six months ago is worse.

Reconciliation

Reconcile manual accounts just like connected ones:
  1. Get your bank statement
  2. Go to Banking → Reconciliation
  3. Select the manual account
  4. Enter statement ending balance
  5. Clear transactions that appear on the statement
  6. Complete when balanced
Same process, same verification.

Converting to connected

If your bank becomes available via Plaid (or if Plaid starts supporting it):
  1. Connect the account via Plaid
  2. Pluvel matches it to your manual account
  3. Future transactions import automatically
  4. Historical manual transactions remain
You don’t lose anything — you just stop doing data entry.

Making this less painful

  • Import weekly or monthly — Don’t let it build up
  • Use the same CSV format each time — Column mapping saves
  • Reconcile regularly — Monthly at minimum
  • Keep your statements — Store them as attachments in Pluvel
Manual accounts are more work than connected ones. But some accounts are worth tracking even if it takes effort.

Reconciliation

Reconcile your bank accounts.