Global Database vs Dun & Bradstreet
D&B is fundamentally a data aggregator built around its D-U-N-S identifier system, licensing and blending data across a wide vendor network — with strict reseller rights that limit how far its data can travel downstream. Global Database sources every record directly, publishes the source, link, timestamp, and official filing behind it, and adds transfer pricing, M&A history, and an ownership graph connecting 45M+ companies and 500M+ people.
Global Database vs Dun & Bradstreet at a glance
D&B's business model centres on its proprietary D-U-N-S identifier and a wide network of licensed data partners, with tightly controlled resale terms. Global Database sources directly and shows its work.
Why sourcing model matters
An aggregator is only as current and traceable as its weakest upstream vendor. Direct sourcing means every fact can be traced back to where it came from.
Every Global Database record carries its source, a link to it, a timestamp, and — where applicable — the official filing it was drawn from. That's a structurally different guarantee than a licensed, blended feed built around a proprietary identifier: it means a credit or risk decision can point back to a primary document, not a vendor's aggregation of one.
What's the difference between Global Database and Dun & Bradstreet?
D&B is, at its core, a data aggregator built around its proprietary D-U-N-S identifier — a widely adopted business identifier, but one that sits on top of data licensed and blended from a broad vendor network. That model comes with a well-known trade-off: reseller rights are strict. Redistributing or building products on top of D&B data typically requires specific, tightly controlled licensing terms.
Global Database takes a different starting point: data is sourced directly, with the source, link, timestamp, and official filing published against each record. On top of that direct-sourced layer, Global Database adds transfer pricing data, M&A and deal history, bank account verification, and a global ownership graph spanning 45M+ companies and 500M+ people — with flexible reseller rights for enterprise clients who want to build on top of it, rather than D&B's tightly governed licensing model.
"A proprietary identifier is useful for matching records across a vendor network. It doesn't, on its own, tell you how current the underlying filing is — or whether you're free to build on top of the data."
For organisations already standardised on the D-U-N-S number for internal matching, D&B's ecosystem has real switching costs. Where flexible resale rights, direct-to-source provenance, or transfer pricing and deal history in one platform is the requirement, that's where Global Database is built to lead.
Key features compared
A closer look at what's included on each platform.
Global Database
Dun & Bradstreet
Reseller rights compared
Licensing terms vary by contract and use case — confirm specifics directly with either provider. The structural difference is below.
D&B, as an aggregator built around the D-U-N-S identifier, licenses much of its underlying data from third-party vendors — which means resale and redistribution of D&B data are governed by strict, tightly controlled licensing terms rather than a simple usage policy.
Global Database offers flexible reseller rights on enterprise plans: clients can integrate the data into their own product, resell it, or build derivative products directly on top of it, since the data is sourced and owned by Global Database's own pipeline rather than re-licensed from elsewhere.
See Global Database on your own company records
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