The limited liability company is an increasingly popular business structure in America, with thousands of new LLCs being formed every day. The LLC is effectually a hybrid business type, occupying the space between the rigid formalities of a corporation, and the casual nature of a general partnership or sole proprietorship.
If you want to form an LLC in the United States, you will need to designate a registered agent. The role of the registered agent involves the usage of their address as your official business address, which means they’ll receive important document deliveries on your behalf, including court summons and other official correspondence from your state government.
There are many companies that offer LLC formation and registered agent services online, and it’s sometimes difficult to determine which one has your best interests in mind. In this comparison, we’ll take a close look at Harbor Compliance and Nationwide Incorporators. Which one is the better choice to form your new LLC and provide registered agent service?
30-Second Summary Of Harbor Compliance VS. Nationwide Incorporators
Harbor Compliance offers affordable pricing for registered agent service, which is complemented by a rather robust collection of inviting attributes. However, their pricing for business formation service is far too high for us to be able to widely recommend them to form your LLC.
Nationwide Incorporators’ claim to fame is that every document they prepare is either drafted or reviewed by an experienced business attorney. While their prices may be a bit higher than some competitors for LLC formation service, their “Attorney-Powered” slogan is more than just a catchphrase.
Our preference between these two service providers largely comes down to what you need. If you’re looking for advanced features and highly customized customer support, Harbor Compliance should fit your needs. If you prefer the idea of a business attorney drafting or reviewing each document, Nationwide Incorporators is a good choice.
We Recommend Zen Business
These LLC Services vs Other Options
Harbor Compliance earned the #13 spot on our LLC service guide, and checked into the seventh spot for registered agent service. As for Nationwide Incorporators, we ranked them ninth for LLC formations and 14th for registered agent service.
There are plenty of competing services in this industry though. If you want more information about two of the most popular options, check out our Zen Business vs LegalZoom comparison guide. To see our entire comprehensive guide to LLC formation services, this article runs down our top 14 options, including a spotlight on Zen Business, our top pick.
Pricing & Additional Features
Harbor Compliance:
- LLC formation (starts at $399) – Harbor Compliance’s base formation package includes the basics of LLC formation, including a name availability check, as well as the preparation and filing of your articles of organization. In addition, you’ll receive one year of registered agent service ($99/year after that), a federal tax ID number (EIN), and a customizable LLC operating agreement.
- Registered agent ($99/year) – Their registered agent service is available for $99 per year, although if you pay for more than one year in advance ― or purchase service in at least four states ― Harbor Compliance will provide a discount of up to 10%. Additionally, you’ll receive access to software that helps you track and file your annual reports, making it easy to remain compliant with your state government.
Who should use their services? We really like what Harbor Compliance has to offer when it comes to registered agent. Anyone looking for low prices with great customer support should be interested in their registered agent service. We also appreciate their LLC formation service for entrepreneurs who need some specialized assistance, but their pricing is too high. If they dropped their prices, they would skyrocket their way up our list of best LLC services, but as is, they’re stuck near the bottom.
Nationwide Incorporators:
- LLC formation (starts at $145) – This package includes the essential elements of LLC formation, including a name availability check, and the drafting and filing of your articles of organization. Additionally, you’ll receive a sample operating agreement and organizational minutes.
- Registered agent (call for price) – Nationwide Incorporators does not offer registered agent service online, and you’ll need to call them to acquire a pricing estimate.
Who should use their services? We think Nationwide Incorporators is a great option for any entrepreneur who wants the additional peace of mind that comes with having an attorney review your filings. The main reason they don’t score higher in our overall rankings is because some businesses are quite simple, and therefore not everyone needs this layer of expertise.
Total Price for LLC Formation + 1 Year Registered Agent
Harbor Compliance: $399 (plus state fee)
Nationwide Incorporators: Call for quote
Customer Satisfaction
Harbor Compliance: We found 77 customer reviews on Google for Harbor Compliance, with an average score of 4.6 out of 5 stars, along with a 4.8-star rating with the Better Business Bureau (19 reviews), and a 4.8 score on Facebook (24 reviews). Their satisfied clients like to point out Harbor Compliance’s excellent customer support, often thanking their representatives by name in their reviews.
Nationwide Incorporators: We were only able to track down five reviews for Nationwide Incorporators, with four on Yelp and another one on Google. While that’s obviously not a large volume of reviews, all of them are positive, with customers commenting on how easy they make the business formation process. Their clients also discuss the excellent peace of mind they receive from having a qualified business attorney handling their business services.
Quality of Customer Service
Harbor Compliance: Harbor Compliance assigns a dedicated account manager (they call them compliance specialists) to oversee your account. These well-informed employees draw from their considerable knowledge base to help you navigate the nuances of business ownership and compliance. You can reach them via phone or email, or simply fill out the contact form on their website.
Nationwide Incorporators: Nationwide Incorporators provides access to their customer support team through email and phone. We have experience with both options, and are pleased to report that we received strong support through both email and phone. In fact, when we called Nationwide Incorporators, we actually got to speak to company founder Mike Ross ― a business attorney with 40 years of experience ― directly.
Company Stats and Track Record
Harbor Compliance: Harbor Compliance is a relatively recent addition to the business services industry, as they’ve served 25,000+ organizations since opening in 2012. There are certainly more experienced online formation services, but Harbor Compliance is finding success as a midsize company.
Nationwide Incorporators: Nationwide Incorporators opened in 1997, and company founder Mike Ross has four decades of experience as a business lawyer. They don’t handle the same volume of clients that some competitors do, but as they say on their website, “Don’t confuse volume with quality.”
Final Scores and Our Recommendation
We Recommend Zen Business
Harbor Compliance (3.9/5): We’re impressed by Harbor Compliance’s registered agent service, especially considering the strong price point. However, their LLC formation packages are expensive, and they’re only really worth it if you need their top-notch customer support and other advanced features.
Nationwide Incorporators (4.2/5): We’re impressed by their attorney-reviewed document filing process, but especially with their registered agent service pricing operating on a variable basis, we understand that they’re not the right choice for everyone. If your company could benefit from their attorney-powered services, they could be the right choice for you.
Our Favorite Service – Zen Business (4.9/5): While we appreciate some aspects of what Nationwide Incorporators and Harbor Compliance have to offer, Zen Business is actually our favorite LLC formation service. For just $39, they’ll provide the full formation process of your LLC, while also including a year of registered agent service. It’s one of the lowest price points in the industry for this combination of services, and you won’t have to sacrifice anything when it comes to features.