Coconut + Contractors & Freelancers: Faster Bank Import
Contractors and freelancers juggling personal and business accounts need to separate expenses for tax purposes. If you use Coconut for your accounting, you need a fast way to get bank statement data into the system.
BankScan AI for Contractors & Freelancers Using Coconut
BankScan AI converts any bank statement PDF to CSV formatted for direct import into Coconut. Upload your bank statements and get organised spreadsheets that make expense categorisation and self-assessment tax returns straightforward.
The Contractors & Freelancers + Coconut Workflow
Contractors download bank statements from both personal and business accounts, separate allowable business expenses from personal spending, categorise expenses by type for self-assessment, and either prepare their own tax return or send organised records to their accountant. Limited company contractors also need to reconcile director's loan accounts.
Key terms you'll encounter: IR35, director's loan account, allowable expenses, flat rate VAT.
How It Works
Upload any bank statement PDF
Supports all major banks. Saves 1-2 hours per month on expense tracking and categorisation, plus 3-4 hours at year-end when preparing records for self-assessment
AI formats for Coconut
Output as CSV with Date, Description, Amount — Coconut accepts a single amount column with positive for income and negative for expenses — dates in DD/MM/YYYY.
Import and reconcile
In Coconut, go to Transactions > Import. Upload the CSV from BankScan AI to bring in transactions from external bank accounts alongside your Coconut banking data. Coconut auto-categorises imported transactions by comparing them against your existing Coconut transaction categories, learning your categorisation preferences over time.
Supported Banks
BankScan AI works with all major UK and US banks, including:
Coconut Features for Contractors & Freelancers
- Coconut ready — Output formatted as CSV matching Coconut's expected column structure
- Smart integration — Coconut auto-categorises imported transactions by comparing them against your existing Coconut transaction categories, learning your categorisation preferences over time.
- Built for Contractors & Freelancers — Saves 1-2 hours per month on expense tracking and categorisation, plus 3-4 hours at year-end when preparing records for self-assessment
- Software compatible — Output works directly with FreeAgent, Xero, QuickBooks Self-Employed
Import Steps for Contractors & Freelancers Using Coconut
As contractor, here's how to get bank data into Coconut:
- In Coconut, go to Transactions > Import
- Upload the CSV from BankScan AI to bring in transactions from external bank accounts alongside your Coconut banking data
Common Import Issues
Coconut is primarily a banking app — the import feature is designed for bringing in transactions from non-Coconut accounts. Large file imports may time out on mobile.
Coconut Import — Built for Contractors & Freelancers
Niche player combining business banking with basic bookkeeping. Targets freelancers who want banking and accounting in one app without managing separate tools.
Try Free — Coconut + Contractors & Freelancers