Experian Intelliscore Plus, FICO SBSS and Dun & Bradstreet's PAYDEX are three separate business credit scores, and the differences come down to who built each score, what it predicts and which data it can see. PAYDEX grades how promptly a business has paid suppliers that report to D&B, Intelliscore Plus predicts serious delinquency from Experian's commercial file and, in some versions, the owner's personal credit, and SBSS is a FICO score built for lenders. One company can look strong on one score and weak on another, and the worked example below shows why.
How Experian Intelliscore, FICO SBSS and PAYDEX scores differ
Each score belongs to a different company and is built from its own data, so read each one in its owner's terms (sources checked November 2, 2026). A PAYDEX of 80 and an Intelliscore Plus of 80 make different statements, and neither converts into the other.
| D&B PAYDEX | Experian Intelliscore Plus | FICO SBSS | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scale | 1-100 | 1-100 in Experian's performance table; 300-850 on V3 | Not published on the FICO pages we read |
| What it describes | How a firm paid its bills, dollar-weighted | Likelihood of serious delinquency within 12 months (24 on V3) | Credit risk of small and medium-sized enterprises, per FICO |
| Main data | Trade experiences reported by suppliers in D&B's Trade Exchange program | More than 800 commercial and owner variables | Not listed on the FICO pages we read |
| Owner's personal credit | Not part of D&B's description | Owner variables included; V3 can blend owner or guarantor consumer data | Not stated on the FICO pages we read |
| Who sees it | Whoever pulls your D&B file, commonly suppliers and lenders | Report buyers, who set their own cutoffs | Lenders that use FICO's service |
What Experian's Intelliscore Plus measures and its score range
Experian's performance table guide (February 2024) says Intelliscore Plus "predicts the likelihood of a business becoming seriously delinquent within the next 12 months," defined as "more than 90 days beyond terms or bankrupt." Higher scores mean lower risk. The model combines more than 800 commercial and owner variables, and Experian names tradeline and collections information, recent credit inquiries, public filings, new account activity and key financial ratios among them.
In Experian's February 2024 table, described as all-industry, all-inquiry performance with no study period given, accounts scoring 76 to 80 had a bad rate of 1.94%, accounts scoring 11 to 15 had 35.21%, and the whole 1-100 population had 14.76%. Experian offers the table to help each creditor "set the score ranges that best align with your company's credit policy," so there's no universal passing score.
Check the version, too. The V3 product sheet (March 2024) says the new scores "range from 300-850" on a logarithmic scale and project 24 months ahead instead of 12, using commercial data alone or a "blend" with the owner's or guarantor's consumer data. A 65 on the older scale and a 650 on V3 come from different models and can't be compared directly.
What an Experian business credit report shows about payment history and delinquency
The report under the score shows what's driving it. Experian's Business Profile Report training guide (dated April 2010, still on experian.com) explains these sections:
- Days Beyond Terms (DBT): the "dollar-weighted average number of days late a business is paying reported tradelines," with the current DBT based on tradelines updated in the last three months.
- Account status: each supplier's balance split into current, 1-30, 31-60, 61-90 and 91+ days past due, plus monthly and quarterly DBT trends.
- Legal filings and collections: bankruptcies, tax liens, judgments and accounts placed for collection.
- UCC filings: liens on pledged collateral, with "cautionary" filings flagged for collateral such as accounts receivable, inventory or hereafter acquired property.
The guide's sample report lists the factors lowering its example score, such as "balance of accounts recently delinquent" and "past presence of commercial account delinquency." Those lines tell an owner more than the number does.
How D&B's PAYDEX scores payment timing
D&B's PAYDEX fact sheet (2020) calls it "a unique dollar-weighted numerical indicator of how a firm paid its bills based on trade experiences reported to Dun & Bradstreet through its Trade Exchange program." Participating suppliers send D&B their receivables data monthly or quarterly, participation is "free, confidential and voluntary," and a trade experience must have been reported within the last 24 months to count toward PAYDEX.
| PAYDEX | D&B's description |
|---|---|
| 100 | Anticipates |
| 90 | Discounts |
| 80 | Prompt |
| 70 | 15 days beyond terms |
| 60 | 22 days beyond terms |
| 50 | 30 days beyond terms |
| 40 | 60 days beyond terms |
| 30 | 90 days beyond terms |
| 20 | 120 days beyond terms |
| 0-19 | Over 120 days beyond terms |
| UN | Unavailable |
The fact sheet describes PAYDEX purely in terms of reported trade payments, with no mention of utilization, public records or the owner's personal credit. Because reporting is voluntary, a business that pays on time can still have a thin D&B file.
FICO SBSS and the SBA's 2026 change
FICO lists the Small Business Scoring Service among its products, and its small business scores page says these scores assess the credit risk of small and medium-sized enterprises for lenders. The public pages we could read don't publish an SBSS range or inputs, and we found no FICO page offering owners a copy of their SBSS score.
SBA Procedural Notice 5000-876777 discontinued the SBSS score effective March 1, 2026. From that date, 7(a) Small loan applications "will no longer receive an SBA-provided SBSS Score from E-Tran," and SBA "will no longer screen 7(a) Small loan applications using the SBSS Score."
SBA SOP 50 10 8.1, effective October 1, 2026, has 7(a) Small lenders use "appropriate, prudent, and generally accepted industry credit analysis processes and procedures" consistent with their similarly sized non-SBA loans, which "may include credit scoring models" their primary Federal regulator permits. A model combining the applicant and guarantors can't rely solely on consumer credit scores, any score used must be stated in the credit memorandum "along with the acceptable approval range," and lenders must review the owners' and guarantors' personal credit reports. We found no SBSS minimum in the SOP. SBA Express lenders may use a business credit scoring model only in addition to their normal credit analysis. For the rest of the SBA loan picture, see our SBA 7(a) credit score guide.
One business, three different scores: a worked example
Take a hypothetical six-year-old distributor. Every figure is an assumption chosen to show the mechanics.
| Assumption | Detail |
|---|---|
| Suppliers reporting to D&B | A and B, every invoice paid within net 30 terms |
| Suppliers reporting to Experian | C: $12,000 balance, $4,000 current and $8,000 31-60 days past due after a disputed shipment. D: $8,000 balance, all current |
| Overlap | None: A and B don't report to Experian, and C and D don't report to D&B |
| Public records | None |
| Owner's personal credit | Clean, long history |
The D&B view. D&B sees only Suppliers A and B, both paid within terms. D&B says a PAYDEX of 80 denotes payments that "have generally been made within terms," so this file points to about 80, the "Prompt" row.
The Experian view. The training guide's DBT formula is dollars 1-30 days late × 15, plus dollars 31-60 days late × 45, plus dollars 61-90 days late × 75, plus dollars 91+ days late × 105, divided by total dollars outstanding.
- Weighted past-due dollars: $8,000 × 45 = 360,000
- Total dollars outstanding: $12,000 + $8,000 = $20,000
- DBT: 360,000 ÷ 20,000 = 18 days
So Experian shows this business paying 18 days late, dollar-weighted, while D&B shows it paying on time. We can't compute the Intelliscore Plus itself, but a recently delinquent balance is the kind of item Experian's sample report lists among factors lowering a score.
The blended or lender view. A blended V3 score or a lender's own model adds the owner's clean personal history, and how that nets out depends on the model.
If the $8,000 is settled and Supplier C later reports no past-due balance, the formula gives 0 ÷ $12,000 = 0 days. Timing depends on when Supplier C reports and how Experian's model treats the earlier delinquency, so don't plan around a fixed date.
Which business credit score a lender will look at
Each lender chooses its own bureaus and models. What you control is the state of each file before you apply.
| Before you apply | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Pull your D&B file and see which suppliers report | PAYDEX reflects only trade experiences reported to D&B |
| Pull your Experian business report and read the factors lowering the score | It shows the DBT, collections, public filings and UCC liens behind Intelliscore Plus |
| Ask each lender which bureau, score and version it uses, and its approval range | A 1-100 score and a 300-850 score aren't interchangeable |
| Check the owners' personal credit | Blended models use it, many lenders review it, and SBA 7(a) Small loan rules require it |
If a lender turns you down, Regulation B gives you a route to the reasons. For a business with gross revenues of $1 million or less in its preceding fiscal year (trade credit and factoring aside), the lender must give the specific reasons or tell you that you can request them within 60 days, and 12 CFR 1002.9 says a statement that you "failed to achieve a qualifying score on the creditor's credit scoring system" isn't sufficient. Ask which score, from which bureau, and what drove it.
EQ Funding is a financing marketplace and doesn't lend. One application goes to lenders who compete, each reviews your file with its own bureaus and models, and approval and terms vary. Offers for a business line of credit or business term loans can show how differently lenders read the same credit. To strengthen the files, see how to build business credit and personal vs. business credit for loans.