Experian Business and Dun & Bradstreet are the two business credit bureaus that matter most for everyday financing and vendor decisions. They are not the same, and knowing how each one works helps you build a profile that looks strong everywhere it counts.
What each bureau is
Dun & Bradstreet is the oldest and most widely used business bureau. Its signature identifier is the DUNS number, which many suppliers and even some contracts ask for. Its best known score is the Paydex, a payment score that runs from 1 to 100.
Experian Business maintains its own company profiles and scoring, drawn from tradelines, public records, and business background data. Lenders and vendors often pull it alongside or instead of Dun & Bradstreet.
How their scores differ
The Paydex from Dun & Bradstreet is driven almost entirely by how promptly you pay. Paying exactly on time tends to land you around 80, while paying early is what pushes you toward the top of the range. It is a clear, behavior based number.
Experian Business blends more inputs. Payment history still leads, but the profile also weighs credit usage, the age of your accounts, company size, and any public records such as liens. Because of that mix, the two scores can tell a slightly different story about the same business.
Why you want a presence on both
Here is the practical part. You do not get to choose which bureau a lender or supplier checks, so the goal is a healthy record on both. A vendor account that reports to only one bureau leaves the other side of your profile thin. When you choose where to open accounts, favor those that report widely, and confirm reporting before you rely on an account.
If you are still setting up, start with how to build business credit on your EIN, then add net 30 vendors that report to feed both bureaus at once.
The habits that move both scores
Whatever the bureau, the same two habits win. Pay before the due date, and keep your balances well under their limits. Do that across several reporting accounts and both your Paydex and your Experian profile climb together.
How BizMotus covers both
BizMotus reports member payment history to Experian Business and Dun & Bradstreet with automatic monthly reporting, so you are building on both sides at once rather than guessing. Pair that with the Academy and a curated vendor marketplace and you have a single plan for a complete profile. See pricing to compare options.
You do not have to master every detail of either bureau. Understand what each one rewards, keep a presence on both, and pay early. That is what a lender sees when they decide your business is creditworthy.