Business Credit Report Cost by Bureau for Checking a New Client

Most people look up business credit report cost at the worst possible moment: a promising lead has asked for net-30 on a $15,000 project, and you want to know if the company is good for it before you say yes. The price of the report matters less than whether it answers that question. This guide lists what the bureaus charge, turns those prices into a cost per client checked, and shows when the report is worth buying and when a cheaper client check tells you more.

What each bureau charges

These are the prices listed on each bureau's US product pages when this article was written. They change, and some products renew automatically, so confirm the price at checkout.

How much does a business credit report cost?

A single business credit report on another company costs between about $60 and $190 at the large US bureaus. Experian is the cheapest single report at $59.95, and Dun and Bradstreet starts at $139.99 for a Snapshot and $189.99 for its On Demand version. Subscriptions for regular checking run from a few hundred to about $2,000 a year.

Bundles bring the per report price down, and both Dun and Bradstreet and Experian say you save by buying several reports at once. Bundles only help if you know in advance how many companies you will check. Most freelancers and small agencies do not.

The cost per client you actually check

The sticker price is per report. The number that matters to a service business is the cost per client you check, because you want to check every lead above a certain project value, not only the ones that already feel risky.

Take an agency that sees eight new prospects a month and wants a check on each one before sending terms. Here is what that costs in a month:

At eight checks a month, single bureau reports cost hundreds of dollars, which is why most small firms end up checking nobody. A flat plan changes the habit: when a check costs a few dollars, you run it on every lead and catch the bad one you would have skipped.

Costs that do not show on the price tag

Thin files on young and online companies

A bureau file is built mostly from trade payment data reported by suppliers. A two year old marketing startup that pays its software bills by card may have almost nothing in it. You can pay $139.99 and get a report that says very little, which is the most expensive outcome of all. Service providers meet these young, online clients constantly.

Automatic renewal

Dun and Bradstreet states on its product pages that its reports renew automatically each term at the list price in effect at renewal, which may be higher than today's price. If you bought one report for one prospect, put the renewal date in your calendar.

The data a service provider needs is often missing

Trade files show how a company pays suppliers of goods. They rarely show how it pays designers, developers, consultants or subcontractors. They also do not tell you that the domain was registered three weeks ago or that the state registry lists the company as forfeited. Our comparison of a business credit report and a client risk report goes through those gaps one by one.

When a bureau report is worth the money

• You are extending large trade credit, such as net-60 on a six figure engagement, to an established company with many suppliers
• A lender, factoring company or your own finance team requires a bureau file before approving terms
• You need corporate family data to see which parent company stands behind a subsidiary
• The client is outside the US, where a global bureau has coverage a US registry check does not

In those cases a $60 to $190 report is cheap insurance on a large receivable, and it is worth buying on top of any client check.

When a client check plan costs less

For most freelancers, agencies and contractors the risk is not a big established buyer. It is the new LLC with a polished website, the referral nobody has worked with, or the client with a trail of unpaid vendors. A ClientVetter check reads the state registry, domain age, website and mail records, public disputes, the OFAC sanctions list and evidence-backed non-payment reports from other service providers, then scores the client from 0 to 100 with the reason behind every flag and suggested payment terms. If you are weighing the two directly, our Dun and Bradstreet alternative page compares them line by line, and ClientVetter pricing lists every plan.

Vetting the client is half the job. Once the work is delivered, the invoice still has to be paid on time, and if chasing late payers eats your week you can automate invoice follow-ups by email and SMS so reminders go out without anyone writing them. Between a check before you sign and steady follow-up after you bill, most unpaid invoices never happen.

Questions about business credit report cost

How much does a Dun and Bradstreet report cost?

Dun and Bradstreet's Business Information Report on another US or Canadian company starts at $139.99 for the Snapshot and $189.99 for the On Demand version on dnb.com. Both renew automatically at the list price in effect at renewal, so check the current price and the renewal terms before you buy.

How much is an Experian business credit report?

Experian lists its CreditScore Report at $59.95 and its ProfilePlus Report at $69.95 as one time charges. For regular checking, Business CreditScore Pro costs $1,995 a year and covers up to 30 companies a month.

Can I get a business credit report on another company?

Yes. Business credit files are not covered by the consumer credit rules that protect individuals, so you can buy a report on another company from Dun and Bradstreet, Experian or Equifax without its permission. The company is not notified, and the same is true of a ClientVetter check.

Is a cheaper client check as good as a bureau report?

For a different job, yes. A bureau report is strongest on trade payment history at established companies. A client check is stronger on whether a young or online company is real, active, sanctioned or reported by other service providers. Many firms run a client check on every lead and buy a bureau report only for the few large accounts.

Does checking a company's business credit affect its score?

No. Buying a business credit report on another company does not lower its score, and the company is not told who looked. A ClientVetter check does not pull a bureau file at all.