The Paydex score is Dun & Bradstreet's measure of how promptly your business pays its bills. It runs from 1 to 100, and a higher number tells suppliers and lenders that your company pays on time or early. Here is what it means and how to move it.
What the Paydex score measures
Unlike many credit scores, the Paydex is built almost entirely on one thing: your payment timing. Dun & Bradstreet looks at how you pay reporting accounts and turns it into a single number from 1 to 100. Pay on time and you tend to sit around 80. Pay early and you climb toward the top.
For how this fits the bigger picture, see Experian Business vs Dun and Bradstreet.
What the numbers mean
A score near 80 means you generally pay on the due date, which most lenders read as healthy. Scores above 80 signal that you pay before terms are due. Lower scores point to slow or late payments. Because the formula rewards early payment so directly, the path upward is unusually clear.
How to improve your Paydex
Three habits do almost all the work.
First, pay early, not just on time. Settling an invoice ahead of its due date is the single strongest move you can make.
Second, add reporting tradelines. The score needs data to work with, so a few active accounts that report give Dun & Bradstreet enough to rate you fairly. New here? Start with net 30 vendors that report.
Third, stay consistent. One early payment does not reset your reputation. A steady record over months is what holds a high score in place.
What will not help
Chasing a perfect number with tricks does not work. Opening accounts you never use adds no payment data, and a single large payment cannot erase a pattern of slow ones. The Paydex rewards genuine, repeated behavior, which is good news because it means the score is fully within your control.
How BizMotus helps
BizMotus reports your payment history to Dun & Bradstreet and Experian Business with automatic monthly reporting, and the Academy walks you through the habits that lift your scores. New to all of this? Begin with how to build business credit on your EIN. See pricing or explore the Academy.
The Paydex score is a clear reflection of one habit done well. Pay early across a few reporting accounts, keep it up, and the number takes care of itself.