Archive - Can I automatically download transactions from my financial institution?

This is an archived document. Please refer to the more recent knowledge base articles on this page

Can I connect to my bank via Moneydance?

Moneydance can connect to your bank automatically, using ‘Direct Connect’. This connection allows Moneydance to connect to a server at your bank (instead of their website) and usually requires different login credentials than you would use to log into your banks site.

You can follow this link to view a list financial institutions that support direct OFX connections -

https://infinitekind.com/fi

If your bank is listed

This means they support direct OFX connections. You can setup online banking with these banks within Online --> Set Up Online Banking. Then select 'New Connection' and choose your financial institution from the list.

Having trouble getting connected?

Many financial institutions will require you to enable your accounts for application-based online banking. You can accomplish this by asking your bank to set up your account for direct connections from Quicken. Moneydance uses exactly the same OFX server connection protocol as Quicken but your bank representative may not know this and mistakenly believe that you can not connect in Moneydance. Calling up your bank and stating precisely the following should get you started. "Please enable direct connect on my account such that I can connect to your servers directly with Quicken. Also give me the login credentials I need to connect Quicken to this service."

Application-based online banking often requires a different login/PIN than the ones that are used for ATM or web-based banking. When you enable your account for access from Moneydance or Quicken, your financial institution should let you know what customer ID/login and PIN to use.

You can find more information within this article - 'Getting started - Online banking and Bill pay'

If your bank is not listed

Unfortunately your bank does not support direct OFX connections, which Moneydance requires to talk directly to a bank.

The best way to get your files into Moneydance is to use a web browser to download them from your bank's web site. You can download into QFX, OFX or OFC files (aka Quicken or MS Money files), any of which will import cleanly into Moneydance.

You can also open your bank's download page directly (after entering the appropriate address in the Account --> Edit Account menu) by going to the menu bar and selecting Online --> Open Account Website, which makes the download process easier.

You can find further information about the manual import process and the 'Open Account Website' tool in this article.

My bank is not listed, but I have previously setup a connection with other financial software - Quicken, Mint, etc.

There are two methods that personal finance software can use to access your accounts: direct connect and web connect.

With web connect, the software basically connects to your bank's website and downloads and imports OFX, QFX, QIF, and OFC files automatically. This connection type is used by other financial software such as Quicken.

Direct connect actually connects to a server at your bank instead of their website and usually requires different login credentials than you would use to log into your banks website.

Moneydance only supports automatic connections through direct connect and not web connect.

This article provides further information about why Moneydance doesn't support Express Web Connect.

My bank have advised they support Direct Connect, but they are not listed, what can I do?

If your financial institution have advised they support Direct Connect access, but they are not shown on the supported list, then please contact us by emailing support@moneydance.com or by creating a discussion on the support forum that includes the bank name and a link to their website. Your bank may have introduced this feature recently, or it may simply be that we've never had a request for a connection to your specific bank. If your bank does support Direct Connect, we'll be happy to assist in setting up a connection with them.