User Manual.

Accounts and navigation

Choose Accounts → Manage accounts. Name the account, pick its type and currency, and enter the opening balance from immediately before the first transaction you intend to record. Enter amounts owed on credit cards and loans as negative balances.

Select an account in the sidebar to open its register. Use the workspace groups for banking, planning and reports. Adjust Text size in the top bar and switch between the dark and light desktop themes there.

Import bank statements

1. Download an OFX, QFX or CSV file from your bank. Open Banking → Statements in Finstra.
2. For OFX or QFX, confirm the account identity and currency. For CSV, select the destination account and map the date, payee and amount columns. Check the date and number formats in the preview.
3. Review duplicate counts. Match a previously recorded payment only when it represents the same bank movement and the account, date and amount agree.
4. Confirm the import and review the register. Use a small export for your first import.

Work with the register

Search by payee, memo or category and filter by date or status. Record money received as positive and money spent as negative. When splitting a payment across categories, make the signed parts add up to the original amount.

Use payee rules or reusable transactions for entries you encounter regularly. Finstra protects dates and amounts on certain entries, including reconciled transactions.

Monthly review and reconciliation

Review statement imports, uncategorized spending and upcoming bills. Open Banking → Statements → Reconcile, select the account and enter the statement date and closing balance.

Select the entries shown on the statement. Investigate any difference before completing the reconciliation. Reconciliation History shows the statement and entries you included.

Bills, budgets and reports

Set reminders for recurring bills and income, assign category budgets and compare planned spending with actual transactions. Use the report library to filter by period or account and export results when needed.

Investments, transfers and planning

Record investment positions and dated prices for review. Save net-worth snapshots over time and review each currency separately. Use savings goals and debt or retirement projections to explore scenarios.

For a transfer between currencies, record the actual amount sent and the actual amount received. Match statement entries to a transfer you already recorded to avoid duplicating it.

Finance files and backups

Use File → Separate finance files to create an independent ledger. Select it for the next launch and reopen Finstra. Create and label backups for each file through File → Backup & restore.

Restoring replaces the active ledger. Confirm the target, back up its current state and review the accounts and recent transactions after restoring.

Optional AI connection

Open Settings & Help → Data & connections → AI Connection to review MCP access. Choose which accounts to share, keep transaction detail off unless you need it, and test with fictional data. Review your permissions again after a restore.

Troubleshooting

• CSV columns look wrong. Check the delimiter, encoding, date format and whether the bank uses separate debit and credit columns.
• Reconciliation differs from the bank. Check the opening balance, closing date, omitted or duplicate entries and payment signs.
• A finance file did not switch. Confirm the file selected for the next start and restart Finstra.