No, you do not need to create an account to connect your financial accounts through Plaid!
If you want to connect your financial accounts to an app or service using Plaid, you should be able to start the process within the app or service. For more information on how to connect your financial accounts using Plaid see: How do I use Plaid?
If you’d like to view and control the app connections you’ve made using Plaid, you can create a Plaid Portal account. For more information on the Plaid Portal see: What is the Plaid Portal?
Companies and software developers, who build the apps and services that use Plaid’s technology, will create Plaid Dashboard accounts. These accounts allow them to manage their integration with Plaid and serve no purpose for consumers.