Racius vs ObraXRAY: Which One Should You Use Before Hiring a Contractor?
If you're thinking about hiring a contractor in Portugal and want to check the company first, you've probably already found Racius. It's the largest business data platform in Portugal, with over 1 million registered companies. But does it give you what you actually need to make a decision?
What Racius does
Racius is a generic business intelligence platform. It covers every company in Portugal, from restaurants to banks, bakeries to construction firms. The corporate report shows raw data: corporate events, court actions, annual accounts filings, shareholders with quota details, related entities.
The problem? The data is there, but nobody tells you what it means. You see the company has an "Ação de Processo Comum" (common civil proceeding) - now what? Is it serious? Is it normal? Should you worry? You see that 2 years of annual accounts are missing - is that a red flag or is it common? The share capital is 5,000 euros - is that low for a construction company?
Racius was built for accountants, lawyers, and credit analysts - professionals who know how to read financial data. If you don't have a financial or legal background, you end up with a PDF full of information that doesn't help you decide anything.
What ObraXRAY does differently
ObraXRAY was built with a single purpose: tell you whether it's safe to hire that contractor. Instead of dumping data on you and hoping you know how to interpret it, we do the analysis for you.
Risk score (0 to 100) - One number. Green, yellow, or red. You don't need to know how to read a financial statement to understand that a company with a score of 25 is dangerous.
Concrete recommendation - "Safe to Proceed", "Proceed with Caution", "Do Not Proceed". We don't give you data and wish you good luck. We tell you exactly what to do.
Explanation of every factor - Missing annual accounts? We explain what it means (the company may be hiding its financial situation) and what you should do (request debt clearance certificates). Low share capital? We explain why it matters for a construction company. No IMPIC license? We explain that it's illegal to do construction work without one and that you could be held liable as the property owner in case of an accident.
IMPIC verification - Racius doesn't check whether the company has a construction license. We do. And this is probably the most important piece of information for anyone hiring a construction company - without a license, the company cannot legally perform construction work in Portugal.
Director cross-referencing against insolvencies - Racius shows you who the shareholders are. We go further: we cross-reference every director and manager against the court system to check for personal insolvencies or involvement in companies that went bankrupt. This is how you detect phoenix companies - construction firms that open, fail, leave clients stranded, and reopen under a different name.
Automatic alerts - If you buy a report and the company's situation changes (new insolvency, seizure, change of directors), you get an email. You don't need to keep checking manually.
The fundamental difference
Racius gives you the ingredients. ObraXRAY gives you the diagnosis.
If you're an accountant and want to analyse a company's balance sheet, Racius works. If you're a normal person about to hand over 50,000 or 100,000 euros to a contractor and want to know if it's going to go wrong, Racius doesn't protect you - it gives you a list of data with no context and no recommendations.
ObraXRAY was built for people who don't want (and don't need) to learn how to read financial reports. They want an answer: do I hire them or not? And if I do, what precautions should I take?
Direct comparison
| Racius | ObraXRAY | |
|---|---|---|
| Visual risk score | No | Yes (0-100 with colour) |
| Actionable recommendation | No | "Proceed" / "Caution" / "Do Not Proceed" |
| Explanation of each factor | No | Yes, in plain language |
| IMPIC license verification | No | Yes |
| Director cross-reference | No | Yes (personal insolvencies) |
| Phoenix company detection | No | Yes |
| Insolvency phases | Yes/No only | Filed / Declared / Closed |
| Email alerts | Follow company (no detail) | Yes, with change notifications |
| Court coverage | Broader | Insolvencies (filed/declared/closed), PER, executions |
| Financial data (IES) | Yes | No |
| Target audience | Accountants and lawyers | Families and property owners |
Data Reliability: A Real Problem
When testing both platforms with real companies, we found concerning discrepancies in Racius reports that deserve attention.
Insolvency proceedings treated as generic court cases - In the case of Diagramamotriz (the well-known Palmela scandal that affected 114 families and 27 million euros), Racius shows "Insolvency: No" in the "Structural Situation" summary. The insolvency filing appears in the event timeline as "Insolvência Pessoa Coletiva (Requerida)", but grouped with other court proceedings without clear distinction. Racius treats insolvency proceedings the same way as any other lawsuit, without indicating that it's an insolvency or what phase it's in. For a user without legal knowledge, a filed insolvency proceeding is indistinguishable from any civil action. In ObraXRAY, insolvency proceedings are identified and classified by phase: filed (pending decision), declared (court ruling), or closed (with reason detail). The score reflects the actual severity of each phase.
No insolvency phase distinction - Racius simply shows "Insolvency: Yes" or "Insolvency: No". It doesn't distinguish whether the insolvency was filed (may still be dismissed), declared by court, or already closed. ObraXRAY distinguishes these phases because the impact is completely different: a filed insolvency can be contested and dismissed, a declared one triggers the 30-day CIRE deadline, and a closed one is historical. This granularity is fundamental for anyone who needs to make an informed decision.
Shareholders with impossible percentages - Racius accumulates all historical shareholders as if they were all current. In the Diagramamotriz case, it shows 4 shareholders with percentages totalling 208% of the capital, which is mathematically impossible. This happens because each "Sócios e Quotas" publication in the commercial registry is a complete snapshot of shareholders at that moment, not an addition. When a new shareholder appears with 100%, the previous ones are no longer part of the company. Racius doesn't make this distinction.
ObraXRAY treats each quota publication for what it is: the complete and current shareholder list. Previous shareholders are moved to a "Former Shareholders and Directors" section, with entry and exit dates. No ambiguity, no impossible percentages.
No cross-referencing of directors - Racius lists shareholders and managers, but doesn't check whether those individuals have personal insolvencies or involvement in companies that went bankrupt. This cross-referencing is exactly what allows the detection of phoenix companies - construction firms that open, fail, and reopen under a different name but with the same directors.
We're not saying Racius is useless - it has its audience and its purpose for professionals. But for someone hiring a contractor who needs reliable data to make a decision, data accuracy is everything. A summary that says "no insolvency" when the company is in insolvency proceedings can cost a family tens of thousands of euros.
When to use each one
Use Racius if you're a financial or legal professional who wants raw data for your own analysis. If you know what a PER is, if you can read annual accounts, if you understand the difference between a declaratory action and an enforcement proceeding.
Use ObraXRAY if you're hiring a contractor and want real protection. If you want to know whether the company is at risk of going bankrupt, whether the directors have failed before, whether the licenses are in order, and what you should demand before signing a contract.
The value isn't in the data. It's in knowing what to do with it.