Paydex score explained: what it is and how to build it

The Paydex scoreis Dun & Bradstreet's primary rating of business payment behavior. It runs from 0 to 100, where 100 means you pay 30+ daysbefore the invoice due date and 20 means you pay 120+ days late.

Most vendors want to see Paydex 75+ before extending Net-30 to a new customer. Most lenders want 80+ before issuing business credit cards. This guide breaks down how the score works, what actually moves it, and the 90-day path to getting one on file.

The Paydex scale

Note that 80 is not "good" — 80 is average. To be treated as low-risk by lenders, you want to be visibly above 80. Paying invoices 10-20 days early consistently is what generates 85-95.

How Paydex is calculated

The score is a dollar-weighted average of your payment behavior across all reporting trade lines. Formula essentials:

• Each payment gets scored based on days-before-due (or days-late).
• Larger invoices weight more than smaller ones.
• Recent payments weight more than older ones.
• Only trade lines where the vendor actually reports to D&B count. Amazon Business and Home Depot Commercial Card don't count toward Paydex — they report to Experian Business.

How to build a strong Paydex from zero

Month 1: Get on file

Apply to Uline, Quill, and Grainger simultaneously — all three are starter-friendly and approve quickly. Place a small first order at each ($50-100 range) to activate the account.

Month 2: Pay early, not on time

When your first Net-30 invoices arrive, pay them on day 15-20, not day 30. Paying 10+ days early is what generates a score above 80. Paying exactly on the due date generates exactly 80.

Month 3: Verify reporting + add depth

Log into your D&B profile and confirm all three vendors show as trade lines. If any are missing after 60 days, call the vendor's AP department — sometimes they forget to report the first invoice.

Add a fourth vendor (Crown Office Supplies or Summa) to build depth. More trade lines = more stable Paydex.

What actually moves the score

Common mistakes that tank Paydex

Missing a single payment

One late payment can drop your Paydex 15+ points and it takes 6-12 months of clean history to recover. Set up ACH auto-pay from your business bank for every Net-30 vendor.

Assuming Amazon / Home Depot count

Amazon Business Pay-by-Invoice reports to D&B eventually but their reporting is slow (60-90 days) and inconsistent. Home Depot Commercial Account reports to Experian Business, not D&B. Neither will move your Paydex quickly.

Not checking your file

D&B files have errors ~15% of the time — wrong industry code, wrong founding year, wrong address. Errors don't directly affect Paydex but they DO cause vendor rejections. Check your file at least quarterly using D&B's free iUpdate tool.

What Paydex do lenders actually want?

Paydex vs. other business scores

Paydex isn't the only business credit score. Here's how the major ones compare:

• Paydex (D&B) — 0-100. Purely payment behavior. The most-referenced business score in vendor decisions.
• Intelliscore Plus (Experian) — 1-100. Blends payment behavior with public records, industry risk, and company size. Used more by lenders than vendors.
• Delinquency Score (Equifax) — 101-992. Statistically predicts likelihood of severe delinquency. Rarely seen outside institutional lenders.

For most SMBs, focus on Paydex first. Experian coverage comes naturally as you add vendors that report to both bureaus (Quill, Staples Business Advantage, Ferguson).