UTF-8 Encoding Configurable Delimiters 6+ Platform Presets

PDF to CSV Converter Reference

CSV output format specifications for Zera Books: encoding options, delimiter settings, column structure, sample output, and platform-specific compatibility for QuickBooks, Xero, Sage, Wave, Zoho, and FreshBooks.

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⚡ TL;DR — CSV Output Summary

Zera Books CSV Output
  • UTF-8 encoding (with BOM option)
  • Comma, semicolon, tab, or pipe delimiter
  • Header row included (suppressable)
  • AI-categorized transaction column
  • Date format configurable (3 options)
  • Platform presets (QBO, Xero, Sage, etc.)
Typical Raw CSV Output
  • Dates as inconsistent text strings
  • Mixed positive/negative single column
  • No categorization data
  • No confidence scoring
  • No metadata header
1

Standard CSV Column Structure

The standard CSV output for bank statement conversions. Column order is fixed. Optional columns are appended when data is available.

PositionColumn NameFormatExample Value
1DateMM/DD/YYYY (configurable)01/15/2025
2DescriptionText (double-quoted if contains comma)"Amazon.com Purchase"
3DebitNumeric, 2 decimal places124.99
4CreditNumeric, 2 decimal places(blank)
5BalanceNumeric, 2 decimal places18203.44
6CategoryTextOffice Supplies
7ConfidenceInteger (0–100)92
8Original DescriptionText (double-quoted)"POS PURCHASE AMAZON.COM WA"
9 (optional)ReferenceTextCHK#1042

Sample Output (First 3 Rows)

Date,Description,Debit,Credit,Balance,Category,Confidence,Original Description 01/03/2025,"Amazon.com",124.99,,18078.45,"Office Supplies",92,"POS PURCHASE AMAZON.COM WA" 01/05/2025,"ADP Payroll",,"14000.00",32078.45,"Payroll Expenses",95,"ADP PAYROLL SVCS DIRECT DEP" 01/07/2025,"Chase Wire Fee",25.00,,32053.45,"Bank Charges",97,"WIRE TRANSFER FEE"

2

Encoding & Delimiter Options

All encoding and delimiter settings are configurable in the export settings panel before downloading.

SettingOptionsDefaultUse Case
EncodingUTF-8, UTF-8 with BOM, ISO-8859-1UTF-8UTF-8 BOM for Excel on Windows (prevents character corruption)
DelimiterComma (,), Semicolon (;), Tab (\t), Pipe (|)CommaSemicolon for European locales; tab for legacy accounting systems
Date FormatMM/DD/YYYY, DD/MM/YYYY, YYYY-MM-DDMM/DD/YYYYISO 8601 (YYYY-MM-DD) for database/API imports
Amount FormatSeparate Debit/Credit, Signed single columnSeparate Debit/CreditSigned single column for platforms expecting -/+ notation
Thousand separatorNone, Comma, PeriodNoneNone recommended for programmatic import; comma for human review
Header rowInclude, SuppressIncludeSuppress for systems expecting data-only input
Text quotingQuote all fields, Quote when neededQuote when neededQuote all fields for strict RFC 4180 compliance

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3

Platform-Specific CSV Presets

Platform presets automatically configure all encoding, delimiter, date format, and column order settings to match the import requirements of each accounting platform.

QuickBooks Online

Columns: Date, Description, Amount (signed). Encoding: UTF-8. Date: MM/DD/YYYY. Amount: single signed column. Compatible with QBO's "Import transactions" wizard.

Xero

Columns: Date, Amount, Payee, Description, Reference. Encoding: UTF-8. Date: DD/MM/YYYY. Amount: signed. Matches Xero's manual bank statement import format.

Sage 50

Columns: Date, Ref, Description, Net Amount, Tax Code, Tax Amount. Encoding: ISO-8859-1. Date: DD/MM/YYYY. Comma-delimited. Matches Sage 50 transaction import template.

Wave Accounting

Columns: Date, Description, Amount (signed), Account Name. UTF-8 encoding. Date: MM/DD/YYYY. Negative for expenses, positive for income.

FreshBooks

Columns: Date, Merchant, Amount (signed), Category. UTF-8 with BOM. Date: YYYY-MM-DD. Compatible with FreshBooks CSV import.

Zoho Books

Columns: Date, Payee/Payer, Amount (signed), Account. UTF-8. Date: MM/DD/YYYY. Matches Zoho Books transaction import format.


4

Invoice & Financial Statement CSV Output

CSV output for invoice and financial statement conversions uses different column structures appropriate to each document type.

9Columns: bank statement CSV
14Columns: invoice line item CSV
4Delimiter options available
6+Platform presets with optimized settings

Invoice CSV Columns

ColumnDataExample
1Invoice NumberINV-2025-0042
2Vendor NameStaples Business
3Invoice Date01/15/2025
4Due Date02/14/2025
5Line Item DescriptionOffice Chair Model X200
6Quantity2
7Unit Price299.99
8Line Total599.98
9Subtotal599.98
10Tax Rate %5.00
11Tax Amount30.00
12Total Amount629.98
13PO NumberPO-2025-112
14Payment TermsNet 30

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Frequently Asked Questions

What encoding does the Zera Books CSV output use?

Zera Books CSV output uses UTF-8 encoding by default. This handles special characters in transaction descriptions. A UTF-8 BOM (byte order mark) option is available for compatibility with older Excel versions on Windows.

What delimiter options are available for CSV export?

Zera Books supports comma (,), semicolon (;), tab (\t), and pipe (|) delimiters. Comma is the default. Semicolon is recommended for European locales where commas are used as decimal separators.

How are amounts formatted in the CSV output?

Amounts are formatted as plain numeric values with 2 decimal places and no currency symbol or thousand separator in the default output. The thousand separator and currency symbol options can be enabled in export settings. Negative amounts use a minus sign prefix.

Does the CSV output include a header row?

Yes. The first row of every CSV output is a column header row. Header names match the column names in the Zera Books data schema. The header row can be optionally suppressed for systems that expect data-only input.

Related Resources

Explore related Zera Books features and documentation.

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