Karchu vs Plaid
Plaid is developer infrastructure - a paid API that other apps use to pull transactions from your bank by asking for your online banking credentials. Karchu is a finished product for humans, and it explicitly avoids aggregators like Plaid. This comparison is really about two philosophies: live feeds via credentials vs statement files under your control.
Feature comparison
| Feature | Karchu | Plaid |
|---|---|---|
| End-user product | Yes | No |
| Requires bank credentials | No | Yes |
| Live transaction feeds | No | Yes |
| PDF and scanned statement import | Yes | No |
| Categorization dashboards | Yes | No |
| Team and business workspaces | Yes | No |
| Bank coverage | Any bank with a statement | Aggregator-supported banks |
| Storage of ongoing access token | No | Yes |
| Best for | Analysis, privacy-conscious users | App developers |
When Plaid is the better fit
- You are a developer building an app that needs live bank data.
- You want automatic daily transaction sync.
- Your users are comfortable sharing bank credentials with a third party.
- Your bank is on the aggregator's supported list.
When Karchu is the better fit
- You want a finished analysis product, not an API to integrate.
- You do not want to hand your online banking password to a third party.
- You want to analyze statements from banks aggregators do not support.
- You need PDF, scanned PDF, or Excel imports.
Frequently asked
Does Karchu use Plaid under the hood?
No. Karchu deliberately avoids all bank aggregators. You bring the statement file your bank already produces, and the pipeline stops when you close the tab.
Why avoid aggregators?
Aggregators require your online banking credentials, store an ongoing token to keep pulling data, break silently when banks change flows, and cover a limited set of institutions. Uploads sidestep every one of those trade-offs.
Can I still get automated analysis?
Yes. Karchu categorizes the moment you upload. You do lose live daily sync; you gain full control over what gets analyzed and when.
Popular bank statement analyzers
Bring a real statement to see how Karchu handles it. These bank pages walk through export steps and quirks for the most searched banks in this comparison's market.
- Chase statement analyzer
Export and analyze Chase PDF, CSV, and Excel statements.
- Wells Fargo statement analyzer
Export and analyze Wells Fargo PDF, CSV, and Excel statements.
- Bank of America statement analyzer
Export and analyze Bank of America PDF, CSV, and Excel statements.
- Citibank statement analyzer
Export and analyze Citibank PDF, CSV, and Excel statements.
- Capital One statement analyzer
Export and analyze Capital One PDF, CSV, and Excel statements.
- TD Bank statement analyzer
Export and analyze TD Bank PDF, CSV, and Excel statements.
See Karchu on your own statement
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