Delphi score: what Experian's business credit score means for your company

The Delphi score is Experian's credit score for your company: a number from 0 to 100 that predicts how likely the business is to fail in the next 12 months. Higher is safer, and Experian calls 81 or above low risk. Here's what each band means, what moves the score and how lenders, iwoca included, use it.

Your Delphi score is one input, not the verdict. When iwoca assesses an application, we check credit files at three agencies (Experian, Equifax and TransUnion), and our statistical models work alongside human underwriters.

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What do the Delphi score bands mean?

Experian sorts every Commercial Delphi score into one of eight bands, each with a star rating. A score of 91 to 100 is Very Low Risk with five stars, and 0 means the company has failed or been dissolved.

A score of 1 means there's a recent winding-up petition or an intention to dissolve notice against the company. A score of 0 means the company has been dissolved or has serious adverse information on file, such as a liquidator, receiver or administrator being appointed.

The two middle bands catch people out. 'Above average risk' (26–50) is the weaker of the two, and 'below average risk' (51–80) is the stronger one. There's no single 'medium risk' band.

Source: Experian's Commercial Delphi guide (updated April 2025) and Experian's credit summary explainer, both checked October 2026.

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What is a good Delphi score?

Experian describes a score of 81 to 90 (low risk) or 91 to 100 (very low risk) as a good Delphi score. Anything from 80 down sits in a riskier band.

If your company scores 51–80, it's in the 'below average risk' band. That's not a red flag on its own, but moving above 80 is the realistic goal, because that's where Experian's own definition of 'good' starts. Below 26, Experian rates the company high risk or worse.

Each lender and supplier sets its own cut-offs, and most don't publish them. So treat the bands as a guide to how you look, not as a pass mark.

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How does iwoca use your Delphi score?

At iwoca, your Delphi score is one input among several. We check your company's credit history with three credit reference agencies (Experian, Equifax and TransUnion), and statistical models work alongside human underwriters, who look at things a model can't judge on its own.

That means a lower score doesn't automatically end an application, and a high score doesn't guarantee one. A weak credit file can still count against you, so it's worth fixing what you can first (see how to improve your score below).

If you're thinking about borrowing, an iwoca Flexi-Loan is a business loan with flexible repayment options for UK limited companies:

• Borrow £1,000 to £1m.
• Choose terms up to five years.
• Get a decision within 24 hours.
• Only pay interest on what you use.

Every new Flexi-Loan needs a personal guarantee from at least one director. That means a director is personally responsible for the debt if the company can't repay, so it's worth weighing up before you apply.

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How do I check my company's Delphi score?

You can see your company's Experian business credit score through Experian's My Business Profile. It's free for two months for new customers, then £24.99 + VAT a month (checked October 2026).

If you'd rather keep an eye on your business credit without a subscription, you can get a free business credit score from iwoca's Credit Compass. It's powered by Equifax rather than Experian, so it won't show your Delphi score, but it shows your score with another major agency, four more scores including an overall health score, what's affecting them and what to focus on. You'll get monthly updates, and you only need to confirm you're a director of the company to sign up. Checking it won't affect your credit score.

Olusegun Shiroye, founder of Bolfis Limited, used it when iwoca launched Credit Compass: "It's definitely a useful resource for keeping tabs on where your business stands - and it's free, so why not use it?"

When iwoca launched Credit Compass, we found that 21% of business owners admit they don't understand their credit score.

For other ways to check, including the other agencies, see our guide on how to check your business credit score.

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What goes into the Delphi score?

Experian builds the Commercial Delphi score from four kinds of data: your company accounts, how you pay suppliers and creditors, information about your directors and your directors' consumer credit scores.

A public record of how one government body uses the score adds more detail. It describes bank data shared under Commercial Credit Data Sharing, trade payment data and public filings such as County Court Judgments (CCJs). It also says the model treats micro, small, medium and large businesses differently.

This is why a newly formed company often starts with a modest score. With no filed accounts and little payment history, there's less company data to go on, so director information carries more of the weight.

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How often does the Delphi score change?

Your Delphi score is recalculated when new data arrives, such as newly filed accounts, fresh payment data or a change in a director's credit record. There isn't a fixed monthly date, so the score can move soon after something changes on your file.

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How can I improve my Delphi score?

Fix what feeds the score: file accounts early, keep your Companies House details right, pay any CCJ within a month and pay suppliers to terms. Here's what to do and when:

1. File your accounts early. A private limited company has nine months after the end of its accounting period to file accounts at Companies House. If Companies House rejects your accounts after the deadline, your record shows them as overdue and you get an automatic late filing penalty. Filing a few weeks early leaves time to fix a rejection (gov.uk guidance on company accounts).
2. Check your registered details. Make sure your SIC code, registered address and list of directors are right at Companies House. Experian's score draws on company and director information, so wrong details end up on your file. You can update them when you file your confirmation statement.
3. Pay any CCJ within a month. If you pay a County Court Judgment in full within a month, it isn't kept on the public register. Otherwise the record stays for six years (gov.uk guidance on CCJs).
4. Pay suppliers and lenders on time. Payment performance is one of the four kinds of data in the score, so late payments pull it down.

iwoca reports how each customer repays to Experian and Equifax every month, so repaying business borrowing on time also builds your company's credit history.

For a wider plan, see how to build and improve your business credit score.

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Is the consumer Delphi score the same thing?

No. Your personal Experian score runs from 0 to 1,250 (it used to be 0 to 999) and rates you as an individual, while the Commercial Delphi score rates your company (Experian, checked October 2026).

The two are still linked. Directors' information and consumer credit scores are part of the data behind the Commercial Delphi score. Lenders also look at directors when a company borrows, especially when a director gives a personal guarantee. Read more on how your personal credit score affects your business.

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Do all lenders use the Delphi score?

No. The Delphi score is Experian's own model. Other agencies, such as Equifax, Creditsafe and Dun & Bradstreet, score companies on their own scales, so the same company gets different numbers from each.

That's why it's worth knowing more than one score. iwoca, for example, checks credit files at Experian, Equifax and TransUnion when it assesses an application.

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What else is on your Experian report?

Next to the score, Experian shows a credit rating, a credit limit and failure odds. Suppliers often use these to decide how much trade credit to give you:

• Credit rating: the amount Experian believes a business could pay within a 30-day period, from £500 to £10m. It depends on your Delphi score and the size of your company.
• Credit limit: the most credit Experian suggests anyone gives you, for example when you place a large order. The riskier your score, the closer this sits to your credit rating.
• Failure odds: your chance of failing in the next 12 months, shown as odds. Odds of 1 to 1 mean a 50% chance, while 7 to 1 means about 12.5% (one in eight).

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Source: Experian's Commercial Delphi guide, checked October 2026.