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The Differences Between Personal Credit and Business Credit
The credit you use for business is separate from your personal credit. They are governed by different credit bureaus and scoring models.
Personal credit consists of any credit lines you currently have opened and/or closed. This can include auto loans, mortgages, and credit cards.
A personal credit report can also include other accounts and payment history (i.e., rent and utilities) if you use a reporting service. Your personal credit report includes negative items like collections, evictions, and bankruptcies.
Similarly, business credit reports will consist of tradelines that belong to your business. These could be tradelines that you or your business partners have opened.
Tradelines on business reports can consist of loans, credit cards, and other types of financing. In addition to information reported from creditors, business reports can include data reported by vendors.
For instance, if you own a spa, the vendor who supplies your massage oils could report your payment history to the credit bureaus.
The resulting credit reports and scores look drastically different from one another. Here are just a few ways these two types of credit differ.
Business Credit Versus Personal Credit
| Credit Score/ Report Features | Business Credit | Personal Credit |
| Major Credit Bureaus | Dun & Bradstreet, Equifax, and Experian, plus others | Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian |
| Score Range | Varies; some have a max score of 100, others 800 | 300 – 850 |
| Tradeline Information | Information may be incomplete | All information included |
| Negative Information Falls Off | No legal limitations | After 7 years (10 for bankruptcy) |
| Free Report Availability | None | One a year or with a declined application |
The purpose of personal credit is to determine your creditworthiness. Your credit score can influence what products you qualify for (loans and credit cards), expand or limit your housing options, and even impact your employability.
It’s usually more complex to obtain business financing compared to personal financing. Factors other than business credit scores can be more important, like your business revenue, time in business, and industry code.
In addition to that, lenders usually look at information on your business credit report (like financing, negative remarks, etc.), and even the business owner’s personal credit score. For more information on business and personal credit cards, check out our article, Business Credit Cards vs. Personal Credit Cards.
Credit Bureaus
When it comes to personal credit, there are three major credit bureaus: Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian.
In contrast, there are many business credit bureaus. Dun & Bradstreet is the most famous.