A D&B Rating is a type of credit score used to evaluate the creditworthiness of small businesses. D&B, short for Dun & Bradstreet, is one of three major small-business credit reporting agencies, the others being Equifax and Experian. Business credit scores are not as familiar as personal credit scores. But they’re worth looking into if you own a business, whether it’s to assess your own company’s status or to check up on a potential business partner or borrower.
With that in mind, D&B actually offers several different types of small-business credit scores. You can get to know them below.
Types of D&B Credit Ratings
| Type of D&B Rating/Score | What It Measures | Minimum | Maximum | What’s Good? |
| D&B Credit Rating* | Overall business risk | HH 4 | 5A 1 | 2 (letters reflect net worth) |
| PAYDEX | Speed of payment | 1 | 100 | 70+ |
| Delinquency Predictor Score | Likelihood of non-or late payment or bankruptcy | 5 | 1 | 2 |
| Supplier Evaluation Risk Rating | 12-month survival odds | 9 | 1 | 5 |
| Financial Stress Score | Pressure on a company’s balance sheet, likelihood of shutdown within 12 months | 5 | 1 | 2 |
| Credit Limit Recommendation | Borrowing capacity | $0 | N/A | N/A |
* If a regular rating cannot be given, D&B will assign an Expanded Credit Appraisal Score based upon the number of employees or an Alternative Rating based on whatever information is available for the company being evaluated. We cannot assign a “good” value to the letter portion of a D&B Credit Rating because it represents net worth. A business can be stable at any level of net worth.
In business credit scoring, your personal credit standing actually tends to be far more important to your ability to borrow as a small-business owner. So it’s in the best interest of your company to make sure you reach top WalletFitness® personally. And the first step is to check your latest credit score, which you can do for free on WalletHub.
Check Your Latest Credit Score – 100% Free
But it’s still a good idea to stay on top of your business credit, too. At some point, you may consider forming a business relationship that requires one organization or both to evaluate the other’s creditworthiness.
In Depth: Dun & Bradstreet Credit Ratings
- D&B Credit Rating – This rating system measures how risky it is to do business with a certain company. D&B refers to this score as “the heart of the information contained in a Business Information Report,” an apt description considering it gives the “big picture” view.
Each D&B Credit Rating consists of two parts:
- Rating Classification: A rating of 5A means a business has a worth of $50+ million. HH, on the other end of the scale, indicates that a business is worth up to $4,999.
This part of the rating is based on a company’s net worth, when available, or issued capital (the value of the company’s shares). - Composite Credit Appraisal: This measures the risk of business failure, from 1, indicating “minimal,” to 4, “significant.”
If the information to give a full credit rating is not available or applicable, D&B instead assigns an Expanded Credit Appraisal Score based upon the number of employees. If this information is also not available, D&B gives an Alternative Rating based on whatever information is available about the company it is evaluating.
If you have a high D&B Credit Rating, creditors will be more likely to extend credit because your business is going strong and has the ability to pay them back.
- PAYDEX – This type of score measures how promptly a business paid its bills, ranging from 100, indicating advanced payment, to 1, 120 days late. According to D&B, paying larger bills may have more of an impact than smaller bills. D&B considers any score of 70 or above to be good, but 80 is ideal as it represents “prompt” payment.
Having a good PAYDEX score could help you win new business and contracts. Both businesses and creditors are more willing to engage with others who have a proven record of paying on time. Higher scores can also get you better terms.
- Delinquency Predictor Score – Just like it sounds, the Delinquency Predictor measures how likely a business is to become delinquent on payments or to declare bankruptcy in the next 12 months. A score of 1 means a low likelihood, while 5 means a high chance. The score is based on your company’s payment history, along with demographic information and any lawsuits or liens against your business.
A good Delinquency Predictor Score means that you’re likely to get higher credit limits from companies who view it. They’ll be confident in your ability to repay them.
- Financial Stress Score – This measures how likely a business is to have “stress” or “failure,” such as bankruptcy or shutdown, in the next 12 months. It ranges from 1, indicating “low risk,” to 5, “high risk.” The factors used to determine this are the same as those for the Delinquency Predictor but weighted differently.
This score is helpful for warning creditors about extreme situations. Businesses that received a low score will likely stop operating after a bankruptcy, cause a loss to creditors, withdraw from a deal and fail to pay as agreed, or is undergoing changes in company structure. Based upon this history, creditors may not want to do business.
- Supplier Evaluation Risk Rating (or Viability Rating) – This is a measure of how likely a supplier is to experience financial hardship or go out of business in the next 12 months. A rating of 1 means “low risk,” while 9 signifies “high risk.” This score is based on the same factors as your Delinquency Predictor and Financial Stress scores, just with different weightings.
High scores in this category can get you better long-term business deals. If you’re projected to keep supplying, more businesses will want to contract with you. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, one third of businesses fail in the first two years, and half within five years. Partners want to know you’ll beat those odds.
- Credit Limit Recommendation – The last type is less of a direct “score” than the others, and is the dollar amount D&B recommends that creditors should extend to your company. This prevents both creditors from offering money they won’t get back and you from taking too much credit and going into debt.
How Much Do D&B Scores Cost?
How much you have to pay depends on whether you’re monitoring yourself or another business. D&B has several different tiers that they sell on their website.
Monitoring Your Own Business
| D&B Ratings Package | Monthly Cost | Ratings / Scores Included | Notable Benefits |
| CreditSignal® | Free | None (only alerted when any score changes) | Alert when your file is changed or purchased Monthly summary |
| CreditBuilder™ Plus | $159 | PAYDEX Credit Limit Recommendation Supplier Evaluation Risk Rating D&B Rating Financial Stress Score Delinquency Predictor Score | All CreditSignal® benefits Unlimited access to D&B scores and ratings Ability to report your own on-time payments directly to D&B Comparison to 8 companies & industry benchmarks Business Advantage Plus access (legal forms and alerts) |
| CreditBuilder™ Premium | $199 | PAYDEX Credit Limit Recommendation Supplier Evaluation Risk Rating D&B Rating Financial Stress Score Delinquency Predictor Score | All CreditBuilder™ Plus benefits Comparison to a larger number of businesses |
| Credibility Concierge® | Varies by customer | PAYDEX Credit Limit Recommendation Supplier Evaluation Risk Rating D&B Rating Financial Stress Score Delinquency Predictor Score | All CreditBuilder™ Premium benefits Specialist updates file and disputes inaccuracies, suits, liens and judgments One-on-one consultations Business Information Report™ on another company |
Monitoring Other Businesses
| D&B Ratings Package | Annual Cost | Ratings / Scores Included | Number of Companies Included | Notable Benefits |
| Credit Evaluator Plus™ | $61.99 | PAYDEX Credit Limit Recommendation | 1 | See company’s legal filings Comparison to industry trends |
| Business Information Report™ | $121.99 | PAYDEX Credit Limit Recommendation Supplier Evaluation Risk Rating D&B Rating | 1 | All Credit Evaluator Plus™ benefits Access to public-record filings & financial statements In-depth info on the business’s owners, employees, finances & more |
| Credit Advisor™ | $188 | PAYDEX Credit Limit Recommendation Supplier Evaluation Risk Rating D&B Rating Financial Stress Score Delinquency Predictor Score | 1 | All Business Information Report™ benefits 24/7 monitoring of company’s file Alerts on changes in the file for 12 months Access to D&B’s listing of financial statements Archive company data |
| Credit Reporter Plus™ | $799 | PAYDEX Credit Limit Recommendation Supplier Evaluation Risk Rating D&B Rating Financial Stress Score Delinquency Predictor Score | 5 | All Credit Advisor™ benefits Access to Overall Business Risk Assessment based on combination of all data |
For more information on small business credit reports and scores, check out WalletHub’s guide.