Are you looking to form a new limited liability company (LLC)? You probably already know that there are some startup costs involved, but it’s important to know exactly how much it will cost you to create an LLC for your business.
Because each state has its own rules, regulations, and fees for LLCs, it can be difficult to discern how much money you’ll need to spend throughout the formation process.
Depending on your state, you could have a formation fee anywhere from around $50 to several hundred dollars ― and that’s without hiring a lawyer or an LLC formation service. In this article, we’ll discuss how much it costs to form a limited liability company in each state, and we’ll also talk about any ongoing maintenance fees your state charges.
How much will it cost you to form a new LLC? Let’s find out!
How Much Does It Cost to Start an LLC In Your State?
Each state has a filing fee for limited liability company formation paperwork (usually referred to as the articles of organization).
Just like the rules and regulations vary a bit depending on which state you’re forming your LLC in, the formation fee fluctuates considerably from state to state. In addition, if you aren’t interested in the DIY route for forming your business, you’ll need to part with some extra cash for formation assistance on top of your state fees.
With that said, let’s take a look at each state’s filing fee for the articles of organization.
LLC Formation Fees by State
Alabama: $100 (plus $50 minimum probate judge fee)
Alaska: $250
Arizona: $50
Arkansas: $45
California: $70
Colorado: $50
Connecticut: $120
Delaware: $90
District of Columbia: $220
Florida: $100 (plus $25 registered agent fee)
Georgia: $100
Hawaii: $50
Idaho: $100
Illinois: $150
Indiana: $100
Iowa: $50
Kansas: $165
Kentucky: $40
Louisiana: $100
Maine: $175
Maryland: $100 (plus 3% service fee)
Massachusetts: $500
Michigan: $50
Minnesota: $135
Mississippi: $50
Missouri: $50
Montana: $70
Nebraska: $100 (plus $5 per page)
Nevada: $75
New Hampshire: $100
New Jersey: $125
New Mexico: $50
New York: $200 (plus $50 publication fee)
North Carolina: $125
North Dakota: $135
Ohio: $99
Oklahoma: $100
Oregon: $100
Pennsylvania: $125
Rhode Island: $150
South Carolina: $110
South Dakota: $150
Tennessee: $50 per member (minimum $300, maximum $3,000)
Texas: $300
Utah: $70
Vermont: $125
Virginia: $100
Washington: $180
West Virginia: $100
Wisconsin: $130
Wyoming: $100
How Much Does It Cost to Maintain an LLC In Your State?
Now that we’ve got the startup fees out of the way, it’s time to discuss the ongoing maintenance costs for limited liability companies in all 50 states. Not only do the amounts of these fees vary depending on your formation state, but there’s also some variety regarding the nature of the fees.
The annual report filing fee is the most common maintenance fee, as most states charge some amount of money for this filing. Franchise taxes are also somewhat common, and these are usually regarded as a fee paid to the state in exchange for the privilege of doing business in that state.
How much does it cost to maintain an LLC in your state? Let’s find out!
LLC Maintenance Fees by State
Alabama: $100 minimum annual business privilege tax
Alaska: $100 biennial report
Arizona: No maintenance filings or fees
Arkansas: $150 annual franchise tax
California: $20 biennial statement of information, plus $800 minimum annual franchise tax
Colorado: $10 annual report
Connecticut: $20 annual report, plus $250 biennial business entity tax
Delaware: $300 annual business entity tax
District of Columbia: $300 biennial report
Florida: $138.75 annual report
Georgia: $50 annual registration
Hawaii: $15 annual report
Idaho: No fee annual report
Illinois: $75 annual report
Indiana: $30 biennial report
Iowa: $60 biennial report
Kansas: $55 annual report
Kentucky: $15 annual report, plus $175 minimum annual limited liability entity tax
Louisiana: $30 annual report
Maine: $85 annual report
Maryland: $300 annual report
Massachusetts: $500 annual report
Michigan: $25 annual statement
Minnesota: No fee annual renewal
Mississippi: No fee annual report
Missouri: No maintenance filings or fees
Montana: $20 annual report
Nebraska: $10 biennial report
Nevada: $150 annual list of managers or members, plus $200 annual business license renewal fee
New Hampshire: $100 annual report
New Jersey: $50 annual report
New Mexico: No maintenance filings or fees
New York: $9 biennial statement, plus $25 minimum annual LLC filing fee
North Carolina: $200 annual report
North Dakota: $50 annual report
Ohio: No maintenance filings or fees
Oklahoma: $25 annual certificate
Oregon: $100 annual renewal
Pennsylvania: $70 decennial filing
Rhode Island: $50 annual report
South Carolina: No maintenance filings or fees
South Dakota: $50 annual report
Tennessee: $50 per member annual report ($300 minimum), plus $100 minimum franchise tax
Texas: Annual franchise tax (varies depending on net surplus)
Utah: $20 annual renewal
Vermont: $35 annual report
Virginia: $50 annual registration
Washington: $60 annual report
West Virginia: $25 annual report
Wisconsin: $25 annual report
Wyoming: $25 minimum annual report
How Much Does an LLC Formation Service Cost?
If you would rather not go the full DIY route with your limited liability company formation, you have some options for assistance. Some entrepreneurs choose to hire a business attorney to form their LLCs, which allows you to be fully confident that every step of the formation process is handled by a true expert. Unfortunately, lawyers can charge rates that are quite high for this service, which can be a prohibitive factor for startups on a tight budget.
Another option is to hire an LLC formation service. There are many reputable companies offering business formation assistance online, and they can really make the process much simpler for you. These companies are also much more affordable than a lawyer’s fees, and considering the fact that LLCs aren’t all that complex of a business entity, you may find that the extra money you’d pay for the attorney’s expertise isn’t really necessary.
If you’re interested in using an online business formation service, you can take a look at Zen Business or Northwest Registered Agent or LegalZoom:
- Northwest Registered Agent ($79): For the low price point of $79, Northwest will form your LLC and include a full year of their premium registered agent service at no additional cost. They also have next-level personalized customer support that makes Northwest one of our favorite companies in this industry. (Read our full review)
- Zen Business ($39): Zen Business matches Northwest’s price tag, while also offering a free year of registered agent service. While Zen Business doesn’t have the same level of customization for their customer service as Northwest does, they do have thousands of fantastic customer reviews available online, which can be quite the advantage depending on your preferences. (Read our full review)
- LegalZoom ($79): LegalZoom can’t match Northwest or Incfile when it comes to pricing, and they don’t include any registered agent service with their LLC formation packages either. However, LegalZoom has a massive customer volume and impressive brand power, so if you want to use the most popular service available, LegalZoom is worth a look. (Read our full review)
Conclusion
The total cost to form and maintain a limited liability company varies quite a bit depending on which state you’re forming in. For example, a state like Missouri only charges $50 to form an LLC and doesn’t charge any ongoing maintenance fees, but a state like Massachusetts has a $500 formation fee and a $500 annual report fee.
Depending on your budget, we usually recommend using an online business formation service to set up your LLC, because these companies can provide a considerable amount of assistance without breaking the bank.
Regardless of where you form your LLC or whether you choose to seek assistance or not, we hope this article helped you figure out how much it will cost to start your new business!