QBO vs QFX vs OFX — which file do I need?

These three get confused constantly because they're genuinely close relatives — same lineage, same basic structure, different intended reader.

QBO (Web Connect) is what QuickBooks Online and Desktop import. It's OFX carrying Intuit-specific additions, most importantly an institution ID (INTU.BID) that QuickBooks Desktop validates before it will accept the file. Get a plain OFX and rename it .qbo and QuickBooks will generally refuse it — the structure has to be right, not just the extension. Export bank statement to QBO for this.

QFX is Quicken's counterpart. Same idea, different product, and it isn't interchangeable with QBO despite looking similar.

OFX is the plain form, and it's what Xero imports, along with MYOB and most other tools that accept a bank feed file.

The practical rule is short: match the file to the software, not to the file you were last sent. If you're on QuickBooks ask for QBO; on Xero ask for OFX; on Quicken ask for QFX. StatementFlow produces QBO and OFX from the same conversion, so you don't have to convert twice for a mixed client base.

And if a tool advertises "PDF to QBO" but hands you a spreadsheet, you don't have a QBO file — you have a CSV and a remaining conversion step. We compared which tools produce a real one in the best PDF to QBO converters.