How to Export a CSV from National Bank
The 2026 step-by-step method for downloading your National Bank of Canada (Banque Nationale) chequing, savings, or Mastercard credit-card transactions as a CSV file — and how to turn that file into a full cashflow dashboard in under a minute.
National Bank is headquartered in Montreal, and many customers bank in French. Your online banking interface may show French labels like "Historique des transactions" (Transaction history), "Télécharger" (Download), and "Exporter" (Export). This guide shows both English and French menu labels where they differ.
Your exported CSV may also have French column headers (e.g., "Montant" instead of "Amount") and bilingual or French-only transaction descriptions. FlowVista handles both French and English National Bank CSV formats automatically — no renaming or translation needed.
The 5 steps
Export your National Bank transactions
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Sign in to National Bank online banking
On a desktop or laptop, head to nbc.ca and sign in with your access card number and password. If your account has two-factor authentication enabled, you'll receive a push notification on the National Bank mobile app to approve the sign-in.
TipIf your interface loads in French and you'd prefer English, look for a language toggle (usually at the top right of the page). But don't worry either way — FlowVista reads both French and English CSVs from National Bank. -
Open the account you want to export
From your dashboard, you'll see all your National Bank accounts — chequing (e.g., The One Account), savings, Mastercard credit cards, and lines of credit. Click the account you want to export. You'll land on that account's Transaction history page (Historique des transactions in French).
You'll need to repeat this for each account you want in FlowVista — but don't worry, you can upload multiple CSVs in one go later.
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Set your date range on the transaction history
Once you're on the account's Transaction history page, set the date range for the transactions you want to export. Grab as much history as you can — FlowVista's forecasts get sharper the more data they have to learn from.
Heads upNational Bank allows up to 18 months of history for deposit accounts (chequing, savings) and approximately 12 months for Mastercard credit cards. For older transactions, see the note after step 5. -
Click Download and choose CSV format
Look for the Download or Export option on the transaction history page. In French, this appears as "Télécharger" or "Exporter". Click it, then select CSV (or Excel) as the file format.
You may also see options for
.ofxor.qfx— you don't need those for FlowVista. Stick with CSV.TipIf you don't see a Download/Export button, make sure you're on the desktop website and not the mobile view. Try widening your browser window or requesting the desktop site. -
Save the file and upload to FlowVista
Your browser will save the file — usually to your Downloads folder. The filename may include your account number or a generic name like
transactions.csv.That's the file you upload into FlowVista. No spreadsheet tweaks needed — the FlowVista parser reads National Bank's format directly, including French headers,
YYYY-MM-DDdate formatting, and bilingual transaction descriptions.Pro tipRepeat steps 2-5 for each National Bank account. FlowVista de-duplicates transactions across uploads, so you can safely batch them all together.
National Bank keeps older transactions available as PDF statements (eStatements/relevés électroniques) inside online banking. FlowVista's PDF parser reads those too — so if you need older history than the CSV export allows, download your monthly eStatements and upload those alongside your CSVs.
The app merges and de-duplicates everything automatically. Your reports will cover the full horizon, not just the last year.
Now upload your National Bank CSV to FlowVista
Drag the file into FlowVista and you'll have categorized transactions, a cashflow forecast, and spending insights in under a minute. No credit card, no bank connection, no data shared — just your file on your dashboard.
Open FlowVistaTroubleshooting
Common issues
My interface is in French — where is the CSV export?
The steps are the same, just with French labels. Navigate to your account, then look for "Historique des transactions" (Transaction history). The download option will appear as "Télécharger" or "Exporter". Select "CSV" as the format — that label is the same in both languages. FlowVista reads French-header CSVs from National Bank without any issues.
The CSV has French column headers like "Montant" and "Solde"
This is normal if your National Bank profile language is set to French. The headers will be things like "Date", "Description", "Montant" (Amount), and "Solde" (Balance). FlowVista's National Bank parser recognizes both French and English column headers automatically — upload the file as-is without renaming anything.
I can't find the Download/Export button
National Bank's CSV export is desktop-focused. If you're on a phone or tablet, the export option may not appear. Sign in at nbc.ca from a desktop or laptop browser. Also make sure you're on the account's Transaction history page (not the account summary) — the download option only appears where individual transactions are listed.
Transaction descriptions are in French or a mix of French and English
National Bank's transaction descriptions are often French-only or bilingual, especially for Canadian merchants, government deposits (e.g., Gouvernement du Canada), and Interac transfers. FlowVista handles these natively and will categorize them correctly regardless of language. Your dashboard will show clean, readable names.
Does FlowVista need a special CSV format from National Bank?
No. FlowVista's National Bank parser reads the default CSV that National Bank exports — including its column names, YYYY-MM-DD date format, and amount conventions in both French and English. Don't open the file in Excel before uploading; some versions of Excel silently reformat dates and break the import. Upload the raw .csv file as it came from National Bank.
Can I combine multiple National Bank accounts into one FlowVista upload?
Yes. You can upload multiple CSVs at once — chequing, savings, and each Mastercard credit card. FlowVista de-duplicates across files by date, amount, and description, so you won't double-count anything. You can also mix National Bank CSVs with exports from other banks in the same upload.
Is it safe to download and upload my transaction data?
The CSV stays on your computer until you upload it. Once inside FlowVista, your data is encrypted at rest, protected by row-level security (so only your account can read it), and never shared with advertisers. FlowVista has no connection to National Bank — it only sees the file you chose to upload. Full details: Privacy Policy.
More guides
Other Canadian banks
FlowVista supports every major Canadian bank. Here are the other export guides: