Sign upA freight broker credit score rates how likely a broker is to pay you, on a 1–100 scale. On SureLoadr's bands, 85 and above is low risk. Read it alongside how fast the broker pays and whether that has been getting slower, so you know how they actually pay before you accept the load.
The basics
A freight broker credit score answers one question a carrier cares about: is this broker likely to pay me, and on time? It is not a personal FICO score and not a general business credit rating. It reflects how a broker pays carriers and freight bills.
SureLoadr's score comes from a proprietary algorithm that incorporates data scanned, tracked and reviewed daily. Every broker is re-scored every day, so the number in front of you reflects how the broker is paying now, not how it paid when someone last looked.
Higher is safer. A broker's score can climb as it pays steadily and fall quickly when payments slow, carriers report going unpaid, or its authority or bond runs into trouble.
The 1–100 scale
Freight broker credit runs on a 1–100 scale, and higher is safer. Here is what each band means before you book.
| Score | Risk band | What it means for a carrier |
|---|---|---|
| 85 – 100 | Low risk | Consistent, on-time payer. Safe to haul for on normal terms. The strongest broker credit tier. |
| 70 – 84 | Moderate risk | Generally workable, but watch whether days-to-pay is drifting later. Reasonable for most loads with normal caution. |
| 51 – 69 | High risk | Thin, mixed, or slowing payment history. Price the risk, keep exposure small, and confirm terms in writing. |
| 1 – 50 | Extreme risk | Serious slow-pay, non-payment, or too little history to trust. Treat a high rate here as a warning, not a win. |
Before you book
The right call depends on the score, the size of the load, and how much a slow payment would hurt your cash flow. As a starting point:
| Broker score | What to do |
|---|---|
| 85 and up | Book on normal terms. Still glance at days-to-pay so you know when the money lands. |
| 70 to 84 | Book, but check which way days-to-pay is moving. A broker sliding from 30 to 45 days is telling you something. |
| 51 to 69 | Keep the load small, get the payment terms on the rate confirmation, and do not stack several loads with this broker at once. |
| Below 51 | Pass, or only take the load on terms that protect you. A strong rate from a broker in this band is usually the risk talking. |
Days-to-pay
Days-to-pay is the average number of days a broker takes to pay a carrier after getting the invoice. A strong score with slow days-to-pay still ties up your cash. Most freight terms are 30 days, and the further past that a broker drifts, the more the rate has to make up for the wait.
| Average days-to-pay | How to read it |
|---|---|
| 30 days or less | Healthy. Paying inside standard freight terms. |
| 31 – 45 days | Acceptable, but trending slow. Watch for a pattern. |
| 46 – 60 days | Slow pay. Real cash-flow risk for a small carrier. |
| 60+ days | Severe delay. The invoice may be questioned or rejected for funding. |
Worked example
A $2,000 load from a broker who scores 88 and pays in 28 days is money in the bank next month. The same $2,000 load from a broker scoring 58 who pays in 68 days ties up your cash, can cost you a fee to get paid faster, and could turn into a collections call. The rate is identical. The risk is not. The credit score and days-to-pay are what tell them apart before you commit the truck.
New brokers
A brand-new brokerage has little or no payment history, so its score starts cautious. That is not proof it will pay late. It means there is less evidence either way. Check how long its authority has been active, confirm its bond, and start with a smaller load. Our guide to hauling for a new freight broker covers the checks in detail, and reading a broker credit score in context covers what the number leaves out.
Carrier questions
Plain-language answers for carriers reading a broker's score before booking.
A freight broker credit score is a 1–100 rating of how likely a freight broker is to pay carriers on time. It is built from how the broker actually pays carriers and freight bills, not from consumer or general business credit. SureLoadr's score comes from a proprietary algorithm that incorporates data scanned, tracked and reviewed daily, so it reflects how a broker is paying now.
Freight broker credit scores use a 1–100 scale. On SureLoadr's bands, 85 and above is low risk (a reliable payer), 70–84 is moderate risk (workable, watch days-to-pay), 51–69 is high risk, and below 51 is extreme risk. Always read the score alongside how fast the broker pays and which direction that has been moving, not on its own.
Aim for 85 or higher to book on normal terms. Between 70 and 84 is usually workable if days-to-pay is steady. Between 51 and 69, keep the load small and get payment terms in writing. Below 51, pass or only accept terms that protect you, because a high rate from a low-scoring broker is often the risk talking.
A broker's score usually drops because something changed in how it pays or operates: payments to carriers are getting slower, carriers have reported going unpaid, or its authority or bond has run into trouble. SureLoadr re-scores every broker daily, so a falling score is often the earliest warning to tighten terms or pass on the next load.
A freight broker credit score is built from how a broker actually pays carriers and freight bills, including days-to-pay, payment trends, and past-due activity, not general commercial credit like a Paydex or bank score. It answers one question a carrier cares about: is this broker likely to pay me on time?
Most freight terms run 30 days. Paying inside 30 days is healthy, 31–45 days is acceptable but worth watching, 46–60 days is slow pay that strains a small carrier's cash flow, and past 60 days is a severe delay that can get an invoice questioned or rejected for funding.
Public authority lookups confirm that a broker is licensed and bonded, but they do not show a credit score or days-to-pay. SureLoadr brings broker credit, payment trends, days-to-pay, authority, and bond into one plain-language report so a carrier can decide before accepting the load.
Yes. A score is one signal. A broker with a solid score can still slow down, and a brand-new broker may simply have too little history to score well yet. Pair the score with days-to-pay, past-due signals, authority, and bond before you commit the truck.
SureLoadr
SureLoadr turns broker credit, days-to-pay, payment trends, authority, and bond into one plain-language report, re-scored every day, so the score is in front of you before you accept the load, not after the invoice goes past due.