Why a bank statement converter must reconcile (and how to check yours)
Extraction errors are silent unless something checks them. How running-balance and opening/closing reconciliation catches missing rows, wrong signs and OCR mistakes before they reach your books.
The dangerous converter error is not the one that fails loudly. It is the row that comes out with the wrong sign, the wrapped description that becomes two transactions, or the "8" that OCR read as "3". Totals look plausible, the import succeeds, and the mistake surfaces weeks later during reconciliation.
Two checks that catch almost everything
Running balance check. Most statements print a balance after every transaction (or at least at the end of each day). If the extracted rows are right, then for any two printed balances, the later one equals the earlier one plus the credits and minus the debits in between. A single misread amount, a missed row, a duplicated row or a flipped sign breaks this equation at a specific place.
Opening/closing check. Opening balance + total credits − total debits must equal the closing balance printed in the statement summary. This catches rows lost at page boundaries and transactions hiding in sections the parser didn't recognise.
Rowledger runs both on every conversion and shows one of four states:
| Badge | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Reconciled | Both checks pass; every row with a printed balance matches |
| Mostly reconciled | Most balance checkpoints pass; the failing rows are flagged ⚠ |
| Balance mismatch | The rows do not add up to the printed balances, so review before importing |
| Not verifiable | The statement prints no balances (typical for some card statements) and no opening/closing summary |
How the check improves the extraction itself
Rowledger doesn't only verify after the fact. It uses the balance arithmetic to decide which column is the balance, which is money out and which is money in, testing each possibility against the printed numbers and keeping the one that reconciles. That's why it doesn't need a template for every bank, and why statements that print debits without a minus sign still come out with the right sign.
What to do with a mismatch
- Look at the first ⚠ row; the error is on that row or the one above it.
- Compare the amount with the PDF. Edit the cell; the badge recalculates instantly.
- If a row is missing, it was probably a line with an unusual layout (a wrapped amount, a foreign-currency line). Add it manually or correct the neighbouring row.
- Only export once the badge is green, or when you knowingly accept a difference the statement itself explains (pending items, reversed fees).
Free, in your browser, reconciled against the printed balances.
Open the converter