Manual accounts require you to enter every transaction by hand. Synced accounts import transactions
automatically from your bank, including merchant names, amounts, dates, and transaction status. You
can still manually add or edit transactions in a synced account when needed.Both account types appear together in your accounts list and participate in the same budget structure.
A connection represents a link to a single financial institution through Plaid. One connection can
contain multiple accounts from the same bank—for example, a checking account and a savings account
at the same institution share one connection. Linking accounts at a different bank requires a separate
connection.Each connection tracks its own sync status, import history, and authentication state. You manage
connections from the Synced Accounts page in the sidebar.
When Commander syncs with your bank, it progresses through multiple stages: queuing the sync operation,
syncing account data, and then syncing transactions. The Synced Accounts page reflects the current
status of each connection during this process.After the initial import, Commander periodically syncs with your bank to retrieve new transactions
and updated balances.
Commander handles the transition from pending to settled transactions automatically. When your bank
reports that a pending transaction has settled, Commander matches the settled record to the existing
pending transaction and updates it rather than creating a duplicate. This matching uses identifiers
provided by your bank through Plaid.
When you first link a bank account, you choose how much transaction history to import—from future
transactions only up to two years in the past. This setting applies to all accounts within that
connection. You set the import date once during connection setup and cannot change it afterward.
Your bank connection requires periodic reauthentication. When Plaid or your bank requires you to
update your credentials, Commander flags the connection and prompts you to reauthenticate through
Plaid’s interface. During this time, automatic syncing pauses for the affected connection until
reauthentication completes.
Synced accounts require a Sync subscription for active syncing and connection management. If you
switch from Sync to Core, your existing synced accounts and their transaction history remain accessible.
The accounts continue to function for budgeting and reporting, but automatic transaction imports stop
and sync management features become unavailable. You can still manually add transactions to previously
synced accounts.
