Form an LLC Today. Simple & Quick!
Hi, we’re Ian and Gabriel — the LLC Guys. With a background in taxes and accounting, we decided to make the internet around business formation less cluttered, more simple, and easy to understand.
On this website, you’ll be able to learn how to form an LLC in any state of the U.S. yourself. And for those who want to save time — we’ll help to select a trustworthy LLC formation service that won’t break the bank.
How to use the LLCGuys website?
Our website is formed into several main sections:
LLC service reviews, LLC service comparisons, Knowledgebase, and best LLC forming services to date.
Feel free to use the upper menu bar to navigate the website. Or you can start forming an LLC by selecting an LLC service or a state below:
Our Top-10 LLC Formation Service Reviews
Select a State & Start Forming Your LLC Today
Suggestion: What is the best US state to form an LLC?
Alabama LLC
Alaska LLC
Arizona LLC
Arkansas LLC
California LLC
Colorado LLC
Connecticut LLC
Delaware LLC
Florida LLC
Georgia LLC
Hawaii LLC
Idaho LLC
Illinois LLC
Indiana LLC
Iowa LLC
Kansas LLC
Kentucky LLC
Our 6 Most Recent Guides
- Utah Registered Agent 2023 (A Complete Beginner-Friendly Guide)
- Texas Registered Agent 2023 – Best Choices for Beginner Businesses Explained
- West Virginia Registered Agent 2023 (Info Before Hiring a Registered Agent)
- Vermont Registered Agent 2023 – A Beginner Guide
- Washington Registered Agent 2023 – A Beginner-friendly Guide
- Wisconsin Registered Agent 2023 – The Only Guide You’ll Ever Need
Should I Form an LLC Myself or Outsource The Work?
It depends. If you have a lot of time — you can do it yourself; collect all the necessary paperwork, file them with the state, and so on.
We have a quick guide explaining how to form an LLC.
However, if your time is valued quite a lot or if you don’t know how to register an LLC yourself or just find it difficult — choosing an LLC formation service is a no-brainer.
We have a list of top-rated LLC formation services on our website, so we encourage you to check them out.
How Much Does It Cost to Get an LLC?
It will depend on whether you’ll do it yourself or hire a company to do it for you. State filing fees play a role in that as well. So the state in which you plan to form an LLC is also a significant factor. For example, some states have low filing fees (like Kentucky – $40) and some have high fees (like Massachusetts – $500).
To know more — read our guide provided above.
In Which State Should I Form My LLC?
That will depend on quite a few factors. But to put it simply — most often it’s recommended to register an LLC in the same state where you live and pay taxes to or intend to do business with that LLC.
If you hold physical assets like real estate, it might be beneficial to tie them to the specific state LLC where your assets are located. You can check our guide explaining the best state to form an LLC in.
What is a Registered Agent?
Basically, it’s a person who will get physical mail and other documents associated with your LLC. Registered agent is also known as Resident Agent or Statutory Agent. The vast majority of states require to have a valid Registered Agent. It’s important to point out that you can be your own LLC’s Registered Agent. Also, it can be your family member, a friend or a colleague.
However, if you don’t want to receive mail and documents yourself, probably all of the LLC formation companies do offer a Registered Agent service, where they will accept mail on your behalf, scan then and forward to your email or etc.
If you want to know more — check out our guide on what Registered Agent is.
What Is an EIN and How to Get It?
EIN stands for Employer Identification Number.
You can consider it as an “SSN” for business.
It will be needed if you want to open up a bank account for your LLC, get insurance or hire employees.
If you want to know more about EINs — check out our guide on what an EIN is and how to get it.
Best State to Form an LLC Cost-Wise
If we ignore your home state and purely check on filing fees of different states, the cheapest state to start your LLC would be Arkansas ($45) or Missouri, New Mexico, Arizona (all of them charge $50). However, it’s still best to get an LLC in your home state, otherwise, you might have to file for a Foreign LLC in your home state, which might double your fees.
State Annual Fees and Reports
The Annual Fee is also called Annual Report. Most of the states require to file that every 1 or 2 years and pay for that filing. On average it costs somewhere around $50-$100 a year.
No-fee states
There are certain states (currently 9 of them) that don’t require paying an annual fee. These are the states that have $0 annual report fees:
South Carolina, Arizona, Idaho, Mississippi, Missouri, Minnesota, New Mexico, Ohio, and Texas.
Also, worth mentioning that some states have very low annual fees (it’s almost “free”). For example: New York ($9), Nebraska ($10), Colorado ($10).
Here’s a guide on top-3 cheapest LLC states.
States With the Most Expensive Annual LLC Fees
On the contrary, some states charge quite hefty sums of cash for annual report fees. Those would be: California ($800) (Full California LLC cost guide), Delaware ($300), Maryland ($300), Massachusetts ($500), Nevada ($500), Tennessee ($300), and Washington D.C. ($300).
The fees also might change after some time, so it’s important to keep up to date by checking the costs with your state.
LLC Registered Agent Costs & Fees
This will depend on whether you yourself or your friend or a family member will be a Registered Agent or whether you use a company service to act as your Registered Agent.
In the first case — it won’t cost you anything. But if you don’t want to use your own or a friend’s address & you’ll decide to use Registered Agent’s service — it might cost you somewhere around ~$100 to $300 a year depending on the LLC formation service provider.
If you want to get the best deal and save some cash — check out our Best Registered Agent service providers here. We have ranked the very best of all.
Best State to Start an LLC For a non-US Resident?
If you’re a non-US resident — you should probably select a state which is the most attractive tax-wise.
Another variable you could look at is the state’s popularity among foreign residents. Currently, the most popular ones tend to be Delaware, Nevada, and Wyoming.
Have More Questions & Want to Know More About LLCs & Business?
Get Some More Knowledge About Business & LLCs