Business Credit Basics
Business credit is a separate reporting ecosystem — with its own bureaus, its own scores, and its own rules. But it starts with personal credit readiness.
Personal credit comes first
Most business lending decisions start with your personal credit, especially for newer businesses. If your personal profile has unresolved issues, those will follow you into business credit applications. Fix your foundation first.
Business credit bureaus
Dun & Bradstreet, Experian Business, and Equifax Commercial are the major business credit bureaus. They score differently than consumer bureaus. D&B uses the PAYDEX score (0-100, based on payment speed). Getting listed with these bureaus is the first step.
Building business credit: the order of operations
Register your business properly (EIN, state filing). Open a business bank account. Get a D-U-N-S number. Establish trade credit with vendors who report to business bureaus. Use net-30/60/90 vendor accounts and pay early. Graduate to business credit cards. Build up to larger credit lines.
Separation matters
The goal is to build a business credit profile that can stand on its own — separate from your personal credit. This takes time and deliberate action. Many business owners skip steps and end up personally guaranteeing everything indefinitely.
Fundability
Lenders evaluate "fundability" — the total picture of your business's creditworthiness. This includes: time in business, revenue, business credit scores, personal credit scores, industry risk, and documentation quality. ScorePros AI's business credit path helps you assess and improve each factor.
ScorePros AI puts this knowledge to work
A rules engine to find issues. AI to explain them. Tools to act. Tracking to measure progress.