Truist was formed by the 2019 merger of BB&T and SunTrust, and the bank has been gradually consolidating onto a single statement format ever since. As of mid-2026, you'll still see all three formats in client engagements: native Truist, legacy BB&T, and legacy SunTrust. They're not interchangeable from a conversion standpoint.
This is one of those situations where "what bank is your client at?" isn't quite enough — you also need to know which format the statements are in.
Short version: Truist has three statement formats still in active circulation. Native Truist is the modern format; legacy BB&T and SunTrust formats persist for unconverted accounts. Each has slightly different column structure, date formats, and ACH conventions.
Truist, BB&T, and SunTrust: three formats, one bank
1. Native Truist format
The modern Truist statement uses a four-column transaction table (Date / Description / Amount / Balance), similar to most major banks. Accounts opened after the merger (2019+) and accounts that have been actively migrated will be on this format.
If your client's statement header says "Truist" and the layout looks clean and modern, you're on the native format. Most converters handle it well.
2. Legacy BB&T format
BB&T's pre-merger statements used a denser layout with more columns: Date / Check# / Description / Withdrawals / Deposits / Balance. The Withdrawals and Deposits split is helpful for accountants but causes the same problem as U.S. Bank's six-column layout — generic converters merge them and lose the sign convention.
If your client has been with the bank since before 2019 and their statement says "Truist" but the layout includes separate Withdrawals/Deposits columns, you're on the legacy BB&T format. Treat it as a BB&T statement, not a Truist one.
3. Legacy SunTrust format
SunTrust's pre-merger format uses MM-DD-YY date format (not MM/DD/YYYY) and includes a transaction-type column that QBO doesn't directly map. Conversions from this format need an extra step to reformat the dates and drop the transaction-type column before import.
If your client's statement shows dates like "03-14-26" instead of "03/14/2026," it's a legacy SunTrust statement.
Three ways to do the actual conversion
Option 1: Copy-paste, one-time use
If this is a one-off and you have an hour, you can open the PDF, select the transaction table, paste into Excel, use Text-to-Columns to split, manually merge continuation rows, drop any extra columns, reformat the date, and save as CSV. Works for one statement. Doesn't scale.
Option 2: A generic PDF-to-Excel tool
Adobe Acrobat, Smallpdf, Tabula, and similar tools will extract the table mostly correctly. The catch: they don't know what a bank transaction is, so they won't merge continuation lines, they'll include columns you don't want, and they won't verify that the converted file reconciles. You'll spend cleanup time after.
Option 3: A bank-statement-specific converter that reconciles
A purpose-built converter recognizes the Truist statement format, handles the quirks above automatically, and — the part that matters most — reconciles the converted file against the statement's beginning and ending balances before handing you the file. If the totals don't tie, you find out immediately, not after the QBO import is already done.
Worth trying: If you're processing Truist statements regularly, an automated converter that reconciles to the statement totals before you download saves the manual cleanup. YourStatementConverter does this on every conversion — 25 pages free with no credit card to test on a real client statement.
Common errors and how to fix them
"QBO is rejecting my date format"
Likely a legacy SunTrust statement. QBO wants MM/DD/YYYY; SunTrust legacy gives you MM-DD-YY. In Excel, use a formula like =DATE(2000+VALUE(RIGHT(A1,2)), VALUE(LEFT(A1,2)), VALUE(MID(A1,4,2))) to reformat, or have your converter do it on output.
"QBO is rejecting my date format"
QBO requires MM/DD/YYYY. If your conversion output uses a different format, fix it in Excel before importing. The simplest formula is =TEXT(A1,"MM/DD/YYYY") applied to the date column.
"Descriptions are showing up twice or in pieces"
Almost always a continuation-line problem. Sort the converted file by date; any row with a blank date is a continuation that should be merged into the row above. Filter for blank dates, copy descriptions up, then delete the empty rows.
Importing the converted file into QuickBooks Online
Once you have a clean Excel or CSV file from a Truist statement, the QBO import is the same as for any other bank. QBO expects three columns:
| Column | Format | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Date | MM/DD/YYYY | QBO is strict on date formatting |
| Description | Plain text | Keep under 4,000 characters |
| Amount | Decimal, negative for debits | Or use separate Credit/Debit columns |
To import:
- In QBO, go to Bookkeeping → Transactions → Bank transactions
- Choose the bank account, click the dropdown next to "Link account," and pick Upload from file
- Drag in the CSV, map the columns, click Next
- Spot-check a few transactions on the preview
- Confirm and import
QBO will check against existing transactions to prevent duplicate imports, so re-running a statement won't double-count.
Final checklist before importing your Truist file to QBO
- Three columns only: Date, Description, Amount
- Date in MM/DD/YYYY format
- Debits are negative (or split into Credit/Debit columns)
- Any running balance column removed
- No empty rows or unmerged continuation rows
- Total of Amount column equals Statement ending balance minus Beginning balance
If all six are checked, the QBO import will be uneventful — which is the goal.
For more on the reconciliation discipline that makes catch-up work tractable, see our walkthrough on catching up 24 months of bookkeeping.