Connect your bank with SimpleFIN

Bank feeds let Studio download recent transactions from your bank so you do not type them. Studio offers two ways:

SimpleFIN, for everyone, the free version included. SimpleFIN is offered by separate services: SimpleFIN Bridge or another SimpleFIN provider. You connect your bank on the provider’s site, and Studio downloads through the access the provider gives you.
Bank feeds (AceMoney Cloud), for AceMoney Cloud subscribers with a bank in the United States. You connect the bank from Studio on a computer and finish in your browser. See Connect a bank through AceMoney Cloud.

Either way, your bank login never enters Studio.

Before you begin

An account with SimpleFIN Bridge or another SimpleFIN provider, with at least one bank connected. The provider charges its own fee, billed by the provider, not by MechCAD.
An internet connection when you connect and each time you sync.
SimpleFIN feeds work on the free version and on an unlocked Studio alike. The only limit is the free version’s three editable accounts, explained below.

Get a setup token from your SimpleFIN provider

In Studio open Settings, then the Connections tab, and find Bank feeds.
Choose Get a SimpleFIN token ↗. Your browser opens the SimpleFIN Bridge site. With another SimpleFIN provider, open its site instead.
Sign in to the provider (or create an account there), connect your bank there, and create a setup token.
Copy the token. It is a long block of letters and digits and can be used only once.

Connect Studio to SimpleFIN

Paste the token into SimpleFIN setup token.
Choose Connect. Studio exchanges the token for a permanent connection; the section now reads Connected to SimpleFIN, with Sync now and Disconnect.
Choose Sync now to run the first sync.

The connection belongs to the document that is open. Another document needs its own token.

Match bank accounts to Studio accounts

On the first sync, and on any later sync that finds a bank account you have not linked yet, the Match bank-feed accounts dialog opens. It says how many accounts SimpleFIN found that are not linked yet, with one dropdown per bank account.

For each bank account, pick the existing Studio account it belongs to, or leave Add new account. Pick an account in the same currency as the bank account: Studio does not convert the amounts a feed downloads.
Choose Continue. Choose Cancel to skip for now; the accounts are offered again on the next sync.

A new account created here starts with a zero opening balance, because the provider returns only the last few months of transactions and seeding it with today’s balance would count them twice. After the sync, edit the account and set Opening balance to what the bank showed just before the earliest imported transaction; the running balance then matches your statement.

Sync on demand

Studio does not sync SimpleFIN in the background. Whenever you want new transactions, open Settings ▸ Connections and choose Sync now. A message reports the result, for example 3 new, 12 duplicates skipped, 1 marked imported. The provider refreshes its copy of your bank data on its own schedule (SimpleFIN Bridge about once a day), so syncing more often than that brings nothing new.

What a sync imports

Transactions from the window the provider makes available (roughly the last ninety days with SimpleFIN Bridge), for every linked account.
Each new row lands in the register with the status Imported, so you can review it, set a category and clear it like any other transaction. In the register’s Filters dialog, the Imported chip under Status finds them; on the Accounts page, Accept imported transactions in an account’s ⋮ menu clears them all at once.
A transaction that already exists in the account is not added twice: the sync skips it and, when it matches an existing row you entered by hand, marks that row Imported instead.
Balances are not imported. Your running balance comes from the opening balance plus the transactions, as always.

Add a bank account later

Connect the new bank or account on the provider’s site, then choose Sync now in Studio. The Match bank-feed accounts dialog opens for the account that is not linked yet.

Disconnect

Choose Disconnect under Bank feeds. Imported transactions and the accounts stay in your document; only the connection and the account links are removed. To connect again, create a fresh setup token on the provider’s site, because a token works only once.

Connect a bank through AceMoney Cloud

With an active AceMoney Cloud subscription you can connect a bank in the United States without a SimpleFIN provider. You set it up in Studio on a computer, signed in to your AceMoney account, with Cloud sync set up on that computer.

Open Settings ▸ Connections and find Bank feeds (AceMoney Cloud).
Choose Connect bank. Your browser opens; Studio shows Waiting for you to finish in your browser….
In the browser, pick your bank and sign in to it there.
Back in Studio, Bank connected. confirms it, and the bank appears under Connected banks.
Choose Sync now. The first time, Match your bank accounts asks you to choose the AceMoney account each bank account belongs to, or Add new account.

The result line reads, for example, 3 new, 1 updated. or Nothing new. Transactions waiting for you are also brought in each time you open the document. To remove a bank, choose Disconnect beside it; Studio asks Disconnect …? Transactions already in your ledger stay. When the bank asks you to sign in again, choose Reconnect. See Bank feeds in AceMoney Cloud.

Check your bank connections

From version 1.2, Bank connections at the top of the Connections tab lists each account that a feed brings transactions into, with Last update: … and its status: Working, Not updated yet, Out of date, Update failed, Needs sign-in, First update didn’t finish, Problem at the bank or Can’t receive transactions. A line under the account says what to do, Reconnect appears where the bank asks you to sign in again, and Import a file from your bank opens the import for that account when the feed is not delivering. When a connection needs a look, the Accounts icon in the navigation rail shows a mark.

The free version and bank feeds

The free version keeps three accounts you can edit. A feed adds transactions only to editable accounts. A SimpleFIN sync skips a linked account that is read-only on the free version, and the result says how many were skipped; through AceMoney Cloud, that account’s transactions wait, and the result says how many are waiting. A feed also stops at Add new account when your three editable accounts are in use. In that case the Unlock AceMoney Studio dialog appears once after the matching step, the accounts already created stay, and the unmatched bank accounts are offered again on the next sync, where you can map them to existing accounts instead. See the free version and the license.

Privacy

For SimpleFIN, Studio stores only the access the provider issued for your setup token, inside the open document. Your bank username and password stay with the provider and are never seen by Studio or by MechCAD; the sync is a download to this device. For a bank connected through AceMoney Cloud, you sign in to the bank in your browser, and its transactions reach Studio end-to-end encrypted.

iOS (iPhone and iPad)

AceMoney Studio Mobile is not in the app stores yet. From AceMoney Studio Mobile 1.2, the Bank feeds section, the matching dialog and Sync now work the same; paste the token from your phone’s clipboard after copying it in the browser. A bank connected through AceMoney Cloud is set up in Studio on a computer; its transactions reach the phone with your synced document.

Android

Same as iOS.

Common questions

Do I need to pay anything to use bank feeds?

Not for SimpleFIN: it works in every version of Studio, and the SimpleFIN provider charges its own fee for the bank connection. Bank feeds through AceMoney Cloud are part of an AceMoney Cloud subscription (/pricing/).

Which banks work?

With SimpleFIN, any bank your provider can connect to; providers cover different countries and banks, so check on the provider’s site before subscribing there. Through AceMoney Cloud, banks in the United States.

How often does it sync?

SimpleFIN only when you choose Sync now; SimpleFIN Bridge refreshes its data about daily. A bank connected through AceMoney Cloud is synced with Sync now and each time you open the document.

Does Studio see my bank password?

No. You log in to your bank on the provider’s site or, for AceMoney Cloud, in your browser. For SimpleFIN, Studio receives a setup token, exchanges it for an access key, and keeps that key in the document.

Can I use the same SimpleFIN token in two documents or on two devices?

No. A setup token works once. Create a separate token on the provider’s site for each document or device.

How far back does the first sync go?

As far as the provider makes available, roughly ninety days with SimpleFIN Bridge. Enter older history by hand, or import a statement file from your bank; see Import data.

Do imported transactions get categories?

They arrive with the payee text from the bank and the status Imported. Assign categories in the register, or set a default category on the payee so future rows fill it in; see Payees, tags and banks. From version 1.2, when you give an imported row a category, Studio offers Always use … for …?: choose Always and later rows from that payee get the same category (see Categories and budgets).

My bank is not on SimpleFIN Bridge. Is there another way to connect?

Yes. Studio works with any SimpleFIN provider, and connects to whichever one issued your setup token. For a bank in the United States, an AceMoney Cloud subscription connects it without a SimpleFIN provider. Studio has no direct bank login like AceMoney Classic’s online download. If neither reaches your bank, download a statement file from your bank’s website (QIF, OFX, QFX, OFC or CSV) and import it instead; see Import data.

Troubleshooting

“That doesn’t look like a SimpleFIN setup token.” Something other than the token was pasted, or part of it is missing. Copy the whole token from the provider’s page and paste it again.

Connect does nothing or shows an error. The token was pasted incompletely, was already used, or has expired. Create a new token on the provider’s site (a token works once) and paste the whole block again.

Sync now ends with “SimpleFIN reported: …”. The provider could not read one of your bank connections. Sign in to the provider’s site, fix the bank’s status there, then choose Sync now again.

“That didn’t work — please try again.” The connection dropped or the provider did not answer. Check your internet connection and choose Sync now again.

Sync says 0 new every time. The provider has not refreshed yet (SimpleFIN Bridge: about daily), or the bank connection on the provider’s site needs attention. Sign in there and check the bank’s status.

“… accounts were skipped because they are read-only on the free version.” Those accounts are past your three editable accounts. Choose which accounts stay editable with Keep editable… on the Accounts page, or unlock AceMoney Studio.

The running balance does not match the bank. A new account starts at zero. Edit the account and set Opening balance to the bank balance just before the earliest imported transaction.

The same transaction appears twice. A hand-entered row differed enough in date, amount or payee that the sync did not recognize it. Delete one copy; the sync will not add it again.

A bank account never shows up in the matching dialog. It is not connected on the provider’s side, or you chose Cancel in the dialog. Connect it at the provider and choose Sync now.

“Bank feeds (AceMoney Cloud)” says my account has no active Cloud subscription. That section is for AceMoney Cloud, a separate subscription; see AceMoney Cloud. SimpleFIN feeds are the Bank feeds section and need no subscription with us.

“To connect a bank, set up AceMoney Cloud sync on this device first.” Set up Cloud sync on this computer (Open Cloud), then choose Connect bank again.

A connection shows Needs sign-in or Out of date. Choose Reconnect if it is offered, then Sync now; or use Import a file from your bank to bring in the missing transactions from a statement file.