Business formation services compared
What business formation services do
A formation service files the paperwork that creates your business with the state. You give them your business name, an address, and a few other details. They handle the state filing, the registered agent service, and (usually) some optional add-ons like an EIN application or an operating agreement template.
You can do all of this yourself by going directly to your state's filing office. Most people find that paying a small one-time fee to have someone else handle the forms is worth not having to learn them.
Why LLC, EIN, and registered agent setup matters
- An LLC (or corporation) separates your business from your personal name. If the business gets sued or owes money, your personal savings, your house, and your car are usually protected. The protection isn't absolute, but it's real.
- An EIN is your business's tax ID. You need one to open a business bank account, hire employees, or in many cases just to take payment as a real business. The IRS gives them out free; many formation services will file the application for you as an add-on.
- A registered agent is the person or company who receives legal mail on behalf of your business. Most states require you to have one. Many people use a service so their home address stays off the public record.
These three pieces are the legal foundation of most small businesses. Getting them right early is much cheaper than fixing them later.
DIY filing vs using a service
Filing it yourself
- Cheapest path. You only pay state filing fees.
- You learn how the paperwork actually works.
- You become your own registered agent (your address goes on the public record).
- You handle annual reports and renewals yourself.
Using a service
- Costs more (usually $50–$300 in service fees on top of state fees).
- The service handles the forms and the registered agent.
- Less risk of missing a required field or filing the wrong form.
- Most services offer compliance reminders so you don't miss annual reports.
What to compare before choosing
- First-year price vs renewal
- LLC formation is a one-time fee. Registered agent service is recurring (typically $100–$300 per year). Look at both numbers before you buy.
- What's included on the cheapest tier
- Some services include a year of registered agent service in the cheapest tier; others charge extra. Some include EIN application; others sell it as an add-on.
- Privacy
- If you use a service's registered agent, their address appears on the public record instead of yours. This is the main reason many sole proprietors switch from DIY to a service.
- Customer support quality
- When a state filing gets rejected (it happens), responsive support saves days of confusion.
- Post-formation tools
- Annual report reminders, foreign qualifications, name-change filings — most owners eventually need at least one of these. A service that handles them is convenient.
- Whether they sell your data
- Some services pass your contact info to a steady stream of vendors. Others explicitly don't. Worth checking before you sign up.
Common mistakes
- Filing the LLC and then never filing the annual report. Most states will eventually dissolve the LLC if you skip it.
- Using your home address as the registered agent address. It becomes part of the public record.
- Mixing personal and business money in one account. Keep them separate from the first dollar.
- Buying every add-on the service offers. Most aren't necessary on day one.
- Picking a service based purely on the first-year price without checking what renews.
- Forming the LLC in Delaware or Wyoming when your business is actually based in another state. For most beginners, the right state is the one you live and operate in.
At a glance
The five formation services at a glance. Each has its own expanded section below with details on who it's for, what it does well, and what to watch out for.
| Vendor | Best for | Note | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| ZenBusinessFriendly UX. Good defaults. Solid first choice. | Balanced beginner pick | Friendly UX. Good defaults. Solid first choice. | Details |
| BizeeFree Silver tier. Customer service quality is mixed since the rebrand. | Best value with add-ons | Free Silver tier. Customer service quality is mixed since the rebrand. | Details |
| Northwest Registered AgentNo-upsell ethos. Owner-favorite for serious filers. | Privacy and quality | No-upsell ethos. Owner-favorite for serious filers. | Details |
| LegalZoomBrand recognition only. Usually higher-priced than focused alternatives. | Brand recognition only | Brand recognition only. Usually higher-priced than focused alternatives. | Details |
| Tailor BrandsBest when you want everything in one bundle. | LLC plus branding bundle | Best when you want everything in one bundle. | Details |
Vendor buttons further down are placeholders. Real links go live as each program is approved.
Vendor breakdown
One section per vendor with the same structure: who it fits, who it doesn't, what it does well, what to watch out for, and our plain-English take.
How we picked these
Fit earns the recommendation, not the commission. Every vendor below gets the same treatment: who it fits, who it doesn't, what it does well, what to watch out for, and our plain-English take. When a pick pays us nothing, we say so — and include it anyway when it's the right call.
ZenBusiness
Balanced beginner pick. Straightforward LLC formation with friendly defaults.
Placeholder button — the real link will go live once the program is approved.
Best for
Beginners who want a no-frills LLC filing service with predictable pricing and a clean dashboard.
Who should use it
- You want a simple, well-designed onboarding flow with clear pricing.
- You're forming a single LLC in one state and don't need exotic add-ons.
- You want guided post-formation tools (compliance reminders, annual report help).
Who should avoid it
- Privacy is your top priority — Northwest's positioning is stronger there.
- You're forming a complex multi-member entity with custom operating agreements. Talk to a CPA or attorney instead.
Main benefits
- Clean, friendly user interface with hand-held onboarding.
- Reasonable first-year prices and clear renewal expectations.
- Includes a year of registered agent service on most tiers (verify at signup).
- Post-formation tools for compliance reminders and ongoing filings.
Main drawbacks
- Some add-ons (EIN, operating agreement) are upsold rather than included on the cheapest tier.
- Customer support quality varies; reviews are mixed during peak filing seasons.
Our take
ZenBusiness is the most beginner-friendly of the major formation services. The onboarding flow is hand-held in a way that helps people who haven't formed a business before. If you're not optimizing for absolute privacy or absolute lowest cost, this is the safe default.
Bizee (formerly Incfile)
Free Silver tier exists. Tiered packages with à la carte add-ons.
Placeholder button — the real link will go live once the program is approved.
Best for
Beginners who want the option to start cheap and add ongoing services as the business grows.
Who should use it
- You want a well-known formation service with a free Silver tier (state filing fees still apply).
- You expect to need add-ons over time (EIN, registered agent renewal, business license research) and want them all from one provider.
Who should avoid it
- You want premium customer support. Bizee's customer service has been criticized in user reviews since the rebrand.
- You want the polish of ZenBusiness or the privacy positioning of Northwest.
Main benefits
- Free Silver tier for basic LLC filing (state filing fees still apply).
- Higher-tier packages (Gold, Platinum) bundle EIN, operating agreement, and banking resolution.
- Wide range of post-formation add-ons (annual reports, foreign qualifications, dissolutions).
Main drawbacks
- Brand confusion — many existing reviews still say 'Incfile' (rebranded December 2023).
- Customer support quality has been a sticking point in user reviews since the rebrand.
- Free tier upsells aggressively at checkout.
Our take
Bizee is a credible mid-tier formation pick with a free Silver baseline and Gold/Platinum bundles for owners who want EIN, operating agreement, and banking resolution included. The rebrand from Incfile is genuine — when you read older reviews, mentally translate 'Incfile' to 'Bizee'.
Northwest Registered Agent
Privacy-first formation. Premium positioning, premium reputation.
Placeholder button — the real link will go live once the program is approved.
Best for
Owners who care most about keeping personal information off the public record and getting reliable, no-upsell registered agent service.
Who should use it
- Privacy is a top priority — you don't want your home address showing up in public state filings.
- You want a registered agent staffed by real humans (Northwest staffs them in every state).
- You're willing to pay slightly more for cleaner service and zero upsells.
Who should avoid it
- You're trying to spend the absolute minimum on year-one formation. Bizee's free Silver tier wins on price.
- You want an aggressive bundle of post-formation tools. Northwest's pitch is registered-agent quality, not bundled extras.
Main benefits
- Strongest privacy positioning among the major formation services.
- Doesn't sell or share your data.
- Real-human registered agents staffed in every state. They actually receive your mail and forward it.
- Clean, no-upsell checkout.
Main drawbacks
- Higher first-year price than Bizee's free Silver tier.
- Smaller catalog of post-formation add-ons than ZenBusiness or Bizee.
Our take
Northwest is the right pick for owners who put privacy and clean service ahead of the lowest possible price. The forum reputation is real — when small-business owners discuss who actually treats them well, Northwest's name comes up disproportionately often — and the no-upsell checkout matches that reputation. Worth the slight premium when keeping your home address off public state filings matters more than saving on year-one cost.
LegalZoom
The most-recognized brand. Often not the best value.
Best for
Owners who explicitly want LegalZoom-brand legitimacy and are willing to pay for it.
Who should use it
- Brand recognition is non-negotiable in your context (some banks and partners specifically know LegalZoom).
- You may want to add other legal services (trademark filings, will templates, on-call attorney access) from the same provider.
Who should avoid it
- You're price-sensitive. LegalZoom's pricing is usually higher than the focused formation services.
- You dislike upsell-heavy onboarding.
Main benefits
- Highest brand recognition in the legal-services space.
- Wide product catalog beyond formation (trademarks, contracts, attorney consultations).
Main drawbacks
- Pricing tends to be the highest among the major formation options.
- Onboarding pushes a lot of optional add-ons.
- Customer reviews are mixed depending on which service is purchased.
Our take
LegalZoom is the formation service most non-business-owners have heard of, and that recognition is sometimes useful — banks, partners, and contractors occasionally specifically ask for it. For most small-business owners, ZenBusiness or Bizee delivers similar formation services for less. Choose LegalZoom when brand recognition is non-negotiable in your specific context, or when you specifically want the broader legal-services catalog (trademarks, contracts, attorney consultations) under one provider.
Tailor Brands
LLC plus branding bundle. Best when you want logo, site, and LLC in one purchase.
Best for
Beginners who want a logo, basic website, and an LLC bundled into a single onboarding.
Who should use it
- You're starting a brand-driven business (consultancy, e-commerce, services) and want logo, site, and LLC in one purchase.
- You like the idea of an integrated bundle and don't want to assemble brand assets separately.
Who should avoid it
- You only need formation services. A focused service like Bizee or ZenBusiness is cleaner.
- You already have your brand identity sorted and don't want to pay for the bundle.
Main benefits
- Bundles LLC formation, branding tools, logo design, and basic website into one provider.
- Tiered pricing (Lite, Essential, Elite) lets you scale up if you want more.
Main drawbacks
- Branding tools are convenient but not best-in-class. Specialists do each piece better.
- Bundles can feel like upsell pressure at the wrong moment in onboarding.
Our take
Tailor Brands is the right pick when you genuinely want the brand assets and the LLC handled in one purchase rather than assembled separately. If that's you, the bundle saves real time. If you want focused formation — and plan to handle branding through specialists or DIY tools later — ZenBusiness or Bizee is the cleaner pick.
Which one should you pick?
The vendor sections above cover the specifics. Here is the framework we use when someone asks us in plain language:
- If you want the simplest beginner experience
- ZenBusiness. Friendly UI, predictable pricing, good defaults.
- If privacy matters most
- Northwest Registered Agent. Real-human registered agents, no upsells, no data resale.
- If you want the lowest year-one cost
- Bizee's Silver tier. Free for the formation service itself; you still pay state filing fees.
- If you want the LLC plus a logo and basic website in one purchase
- Tailor Brands. The bundle saves real time when that's what you actually need.
- If you specifically want LegalZoom-brand recognition
- LegalZoom. Be aware that the others usually deliver similar formation results for less.
Question to close this page
What matters most for your situation: simplicity, privacy, lowest cost, or having branding bundled in?