As a small business owner, understanding and managing your business credit score is crucial for your company's growth and financial stability. In partnership with Dun & Bradstreet, Revenued offers a free business credit report to help you better understand your business’s credit standing, enabling you to make informed financial decisions and strengthen your credibility with lenders, suppliers, and potential partners.

In this blog, we'll discuss the importance of monitoring your business credit score and provide a step-by-step guide to check your business credit score for free.

Why is Monitoring Your Business Credit Score Important?

Staying on top of business credit scores is of paramount importance for any company, especially for small businesses. Monitoring your credit profile helps you make informed financial choices and maintain a competitive edge. Fortunately, several bureaus offer free business credit reports so you can stay on top of your score.

A strong business credit score reflects a company's ability to manage its finances responsibly. Lenders, suppliers, and potential business partners often rely on business credit scores to assess the risk of extending credit or entering into business relationships.

A positive credit rating can open doors to better financing options, lower interest rates, and improved terms, enabling businesses to expand their operations and invest in growth opportunities.

Step-by-Step Guide: Check Your Business Credit Score for Free

Through its partnership with Dun & Bradstreet, Revenued offers an easy and accessible way to check your business credit score for free. Follow these steps to access your free business credit report:

To check your business credit, you can visit the D&B website and follow their and instructions for a free summary of your business credit profile.

It's important to note that you'll need a DUNS number in order to obtain a D&B score.

Understand the Business Credit Landscape

To ensure that you enjoy the benefits of stellar business credit, you'll need to understand the key players who influence what qualifies as a good business credit score. These agencies compile that information into your business credit file, which is used to create reports accessible to lenders and investors.

Business Credit Reporting Agencies

Three main business credit bureaus collect and report business credit information. It's important to note that what's considered a good business credit score can vary by agency. You can obtain a free business report from some of these bureaus.

Dun & Bradstreet

Dun & Bradstreet (D&B) is a prominent and long-standing business credit reporting agency with a rich history in the financial services industry. Dun & Bradstreet business credit scores are frequently used by financial institutions, banks, lenders, and suppliers when determining the creditworthiness and financial stability of potential clients and partners.

D&B's reputation for accuracy and reliability has solidified its position as a trusted source for business credit information, making it an indispensable resource for companies worldwide.

Did you know? Revenued account holders with a DUNS ID can access their SBFE score are able to access their SBFE score anytime via the Revenued dashboard. Even those who apply but don’t get approved will receive a one-time free SBFE business credit report just for submitting a full application.

Experian Business

Experian is a renowned global business credit reporting agency that has played a pivotal role in revolutionizing the credit reporting landscape.

Experian Business' extensive database houses a vast array of business credit information, including trade data, public records, financial statements, and payment histories. This wealth of data empowers businesses, lenders, and financial institutions to make informed decisions on creditworthiness and risk assessment.

Equifax Small Business

Equifax is a prominent and influential business credit reporting agency with a significant impact on the financial industry. Many lenders will often request an Equifax business credit report when deciding whether or not to approve a borrower.

Equifax's comprehensive database contains vast amounts of consumer and business credit information, making it an invaluable resource for lenders, businesses, and financial institutions seeking to make informed decisions about credit risk and financial stability.

Factors That Influence Your Business Credit Score

A business credit score is influenced by a variety of factors that collectively assess the creditworthiness of a company. These factors include payment history, credit utilization, length of credit history, public filings, derogatory marks, and other financial indicators, all of which play a vital role in determining the overall creditworthiness and financial health of the business.

It's also important to remember that personal credit scores can actually impact business credit scores, particularly if you have high debt or public judgements levied against you. Be sure to reach out to the three major business credit bureaus for the latest version of your report to ensure everything is accurate.

Payment History and Timelines

A business's payment history and timelines have a significant impact on a business credit score. Timely payments are crucial for maintaining a positive credit profile, as they demonstrate a business's reliability and responsibility in meeting its financial obligations.

A consistent track record of paying bills on time can contribute to a higher credit score, which, in turn, enhances a company's creditworthiness and opens doors to better financing options and favorable credit terms.

Late or missed payments on loans or business credit cards can have negative effects on business credit scores. Missed payments are usually reported to credit bureaus, and they can lower the credit score significantly.

This may signal to potential lenders or business partners that the company is a higher credit risk, leading to difficulty in securing loans or credit, and potentially resulting in higher interest rates.

Credit Utilization Ratio

This ratio represents the percentage of a business's available credit that is currently being utilized. It is calculated by dividing the total outstanding credit balances by the total credit limit across all credit accounts.

A low credit utilization ratio indicates that a business is using only a small portion of its available credit, which reflects responsible credit usage and lowers perceived lending risk. This will be reflected positively in credit scores.

Lenders and credit reporting agencies view low credit utilization favorably, as it demonstrates that the business is not overly reliant on credit and is likely to be less risky when it comes to debt repayment.

But high credit utilization ratios negatively affect business credit scores. They suggest that the business is utilizing a significant portion of its available credit, which may be interpreted as increased financial strain or potential credit risk.

This can lead to a lower credit score, making it challenging for the business to access additional credit or secure favorable financing terms.

Length of Credit History

The length of credit history is a significant factor that can heavily influence business credit scores. It refers to the age of the oldest credit account and the average age of all credit accounts associated with the business.

A well-established credit history reflects the business's experience in managing credit over an extended period. Lenders and credit bureaus consider a long credit history as a positive indicator, as it shows the company can manage credit responsibly over time.

A shorter credit history may be perceived as riskier, as there is limited historical data to assess the business's credit behavior.

This will likely result in lower credit scores, making it more challenging for the business to qualify for loans, credit lines, or other forms of financing.

Public Records and Negative Information

The length of public record and negative information on business credit reports can cause serious and lasting effects on business credit scores. Public records include items such as bankruptcies, tax liens, judgments, and other legal actions taken against the business.

Negative information, such as late payments or delinquencies, can also be detrimental to the credit score.

The presence of negative information and public records, sometimes garnered from personal credit scores, indicates potential financial difficulties or legal issues faced by the business. Credit reporting agencies consider these as red flags, leading to a lower credit score.

Additionally, the length of time these negative items remain on business credit reports can compound the negative effect on the credit score.

Public records and negative information generally stay on business credit reports for several years, depending on the type of information and the credit reporting agency's policies. During this time, they can hinder the business's ability to obtain credit, secure favorable financing terms, or attract potential business partners.

Monitor and Improve Your Business Creditworthiness

Regularly Checking and Reviewing Your Business Credit Report

Regularly monitoring your business credit report is an essential part of credit management. It enables businesses to maintain an accurate credit profile, improve their creditworthiness, and increase their chances of qualifying for better financing options and credit terms. You can obtain a free business credit report from the major business credit bureaus in order to ensure that your score is accurate.

Revenued account holders are able to access their SBFE score anytime via the Revenued dashboard, making it simple to monitor business credit directly from the Revenued dashboard. Along with the score, Revenued users will see a few reasons behind their score provided directly from D&B. Even those who apply but don’t get approved will receive a one-time free SBFE business credit report just for submitting a full application. Make sure your business has a DUNS ID set up before requesting a D&B score.

Disputing Errors and Inaccurate Information

Disputing errors and inaccurate information is a crucial step in improving a business credit score. Credit reports can sometimes contain errors, like outdated balances, incorrect statuses, or inaccurate account data, or even fraudulent activities. These inaccuracies can significantly impact the credit score, leading to an unfair representation of the business's creditworthiness.

By identifying and disputing these errors, businesses can rectify discrepancies and potentially boost their credit score. The process of disputing errors on business credit reports involves contacting the credit reporting agencies and providing supporting documentation to validate the correct information. Once the errors are corrected, the credit score can be recalculated to reflect the accurate credit history.

Implementing Strategies to Strengthen Your Business Credit Score

Questions and Answers

Does my LLC have a credit score?

To find out the credit score of your LLC, you can obtain business credit reports from the leading business credit bureaus like Dun & Bradstreet, Experian, or Equifax. These agencies compile and maintain credit information for businesses, and you can obtain a copy of your business credit report from them.

Reviewing your business credit report will give you a clear understanding of your LLC's creditworthiness and whether it has a good credit score. If you find any discrepancies or errors in the report, you can take the necessary steps to correct them and improve your business credit score over time.

Remember that establishing and maintaining a good credit score is essential for your LLC's financial health and credibility. Organizations with excellent business credit scores enjoy better financing options, lower interest rates, and improved terms, which support your company’s long-term growth and funding success.

What is a good score for business credit?

A good score for business credit typically falls within a specific range, depending on the credit reporting agency used and their scoring model. Here are the general score ranges for some of the major business credit reporting agencies:

Dun & Bradstreet (D&B): D&B's Paydex score ranges from 0 to 100. A score above 80 is considered good, indicating that the business consistently pays its bills on time.

Experian: Experian's Intelliscore Plus ranges from 1 to 100. A score above 76 is generally considered good, showing a low risk of late payments and potential delinquency.

Equifax: Equifax's Business Credit Risk Score ranges from 101 to 992. A score above 660 is typically considered good, reflecting a lower risk of delinquency.

Keep in mind that each business credit bureau uses unique scoring models and score ranges. Therefore, good business credit scores can vary slightly depending on the agency you are using. Additionally, the definition of a "good" score may also differ based on industry standards and specific credit requirements set by lenders or business partners.