How BalanceFlow works

BalanceFlow turns exported CSV data into the format you need using reusable conversion templates.

The basic workflow is simple: choose a template, upload a file, check the preview, and run the conversion. For a predefined workflow, it can be as little as two clicks from your source file to the converted file.

Templates handle the repetitive work in between: selecting and rearranging columns, converting dates and amounts, applying fallback values, calculating new values, or creating additional rows.

You can use one of the templates included with BalanceFlow or create your own for other CSV-based workflows.

Start with a template

Every conversion in BalanceFlow uses a template.

A template describes how the source CSV should be transformed into the output CSV. Instead of manually preparing the same file every time, you define the rules once and apply them whenever you receive another export in the same format.

A template can do things such as:

select and reorder columns;
rename fields;
convert dates and timezones;
normalize amounts;
use another field when a value is missing;
calculate values from several source fields;
create additional rows when required.

BalanceFlow includes ready-to-use templates for common workflows, and you can create your own.

For Stripe and QuickBooks, there are currently two built-in approaches.

The Stripe to QuickBooks Net template keeps each Stripe transaction as a single output row and prepares the relevant amounts, refunds, fees, dates and customer information.

The Stripe to QuickBooks Split Fee template can create separate rows for transaction activity and Stripe processing fees.

[SCREENSHOT: Templates page showing the Stripe to QuickBooks Net and Stripe to QuickBooks Split Fee templates together.]

These templates are examples of what the conversion engine can do, not a restriction on which applications you can use.

Or create your own workflow

If your source can export CSV and you know the CSV structure you need at the other end, you can create your own template.

For example, you might need to turn:

into:

Transaction Date | Description | Amount

The applications on either side don't have to have a direct integration with each other. BalanceFlow works on the files between them.

You define the expected input columns, create the output columns, and specify how their values should be produced.

Once the template is saved, future files with the same structure can go through the same conversion rules.

See How to create a custom CSV conversion template for a detailed walkthrough.

[SCREENSHOT: Custom template editor showing Input Columns and Output Columns side by side. Include several mappings and transformations so the relationship between the two sides is visible, but don't try to fit the entire template editor into the screenshot.]

Create a conversion

Once you have a template, the day-to-day workflow is much shorter.

Open Conversions, create a new conversion, and select the template you want to use.

Then upload your source CSV.

[SCREENSHOT: Create Conversion page with a template selected and a CSV file added. Include Template, Match input columns and Source file.]

For a normal recurring workflow, that's most of the setup.

You aren't rebuilding transformation rules for every file. The conversion uses the rules already stored in the template.

Match columns by position or header

BalanceFlow needs to connect columns in your uploaded CSV with the input columns defined by the template.

There are two ways to do this.

By position matches the first source column to the first template column, the second to the second, and so on. This is the default and works well for consistent exports.

By header uses column names instead. This can be useful when column order may change while the headers remain consistent.

Choose the method that matches how stable your source exports are.

For built-in templates, it's worth checking the preparation guide for the source system rather than assuming every export has the same structure. Some applications remember previous export settings or let you customize the fields included in a CSV.

For Stripe, see Prepare a Stripe CSV for QuickBooks import.

Preview before processing

Before running the conversion, BalanceFlow shows the source data and the resulting output.

This is an important part of the workflow.

You can check that dates look right, amounts were transformed as expected, descriptions contain useful information, and additional rows were created where necessary.

[SCREENSHOT: Conversion Preview page showing Source Data and Output Data together. Use a file where the transformation is obvious from the visible rows.]

The preview is particularly useful the first time you use a new template.

Once you've verified that the rules produce the result you expect, later files using the same template become much more routine.

Run the conversion

When the preview looks right, run the conversion.

BalanceFlow processes the complete CSV using the same rules you just previewed. When processing is complete, download the resulting file.

[SCREENSHOT: Completed conversion page showing Status: Completed and the Download File button.]

For an established workflow, this is where BalanceFlow becomes deliberately uneventful:

upload the file → run the conversion → download the result

The template carries the complexity, so repeating the process doesn't require repeating the setup.

Import the result

What happens next depends on your workflow.

The converted CSV is a normal file that you can download and use with the destination system. BalanceFlow doesn't require the source and destination applications to be directly connected.

For example, with a Stripe-to-QuickBooks workflow:

Stripe export → BalanceFlow conversion → QuickBooks import

The detailed process is covered in How to import Stripe transactions to QuickBooks.

If you're new to QuickBooks CSV imports themselves, see the more general QuickBooks import guide.

Choose how much detail you want to preserve

Sometimes there is more than one reasonable way to transform the same source data.

Stripe is a good example.

You can keep payment and fee information together in a net transaction, or create separate rows so processing fees remain independently visible.

BalanceFlow provides templates for both approaches rather than assuming that every accounting workflow should look the same.

See How to split fees for QuickBooks import for an explanation of the split-fee approach.

For workflows based around individual Stripe transactions and payouts, Using a clearing account for Stripe reconciliation explains how a clearing account can connect transaction-level activity with the payouts that eventually reach your bank.

Work with historical data

CSV workflows are also useful when you need to process older data.

You don't have to treat a large historical migration as a single conversion. In fact, dividing it into periods makes the result considerably easier to review.

For example:

2023 → convert → review → import

2024 → convert → review → import

2025 → convert → review → import

This gives you a checkpoint after each period instead of discovering a problem after processing the entire history.

For the Stripe and QuickBooks workflow, see Import historical Stripe transactions.

Work with other people

BalanceFlow also supports shared workspaces.

Every account starts with a personal workspace. On plans that support collaboration, you can invite other people to work with the same conversions and templates without sharing your BalanceFlow login.

[SCREENSHOT: Workspace Settings page focused on Add Workspace Member, showing the email field and Administrator/Editor choices.]

Editors can create resources and manage their own work. Administrators can also manage resources created by other members. Workspace membership itself remains under the owner's control.

The workspace owner's plan determines the features and limits available inside that workspace. A member doesn't need to buy the same plan simply to participate.

Unlimited users can also create additional workspaces, which is useful when different clients, businesses or projects should have their own resources and members.

See Shared workspaces for workspace creation, invitations, roles and usage.

Track usage across your workspaces

Conversions performed by workspace members use the workspace owner's allowance.

BalanceFlow records which workspace performed the conversion and which member ran it, giving the owner a way to understand where their allowance is being used.

[SCREENSHOT: Usage page with several conversion entries. Show Workspace, Performed By, Details and Balance columns.]

If you own multiple workspaces, they share your conversion allowance rather than receiving a separate allowance for each workspace.

This keeps billing attached to the owner while still allowing other people to perform the actual work.

BalanceFlow doesn't need access to your other accounts

The core BalanceFlow workflow is file-based.

You export a CSV from the source application, upload it to BalanceFlow, transform it according to defined rules, and download the resulting CSV.

There is no need to give BalanceFlow access to your Stripe or QuickBooks account just to perform the conversion.

This also makes the same conversion model useful beyond the built-in integrations:

export → transform → import

As long as the source and destination can work with compatible CSV data, a template can define what happens in between.

Where to go next

If you're trying BalanceFlow for the first time, the easiest starting point is an existing template. Upload a representative file, check the preview, and see exactly what the template produces.

For Stripe → QuickBooks, start with Prepare a Stripe CSV for QuickBooks import and then choose either the Net template or Split Fee template.

For another CSV workflow, start with creating a custom conversion template.

Once the template is ready, the recurring part stays intentionally short: choose it, upload your file, preview the result, and run the conversion.