Can you really form an LLC for free?

What does a free LLC plan actually include?

A free plan covers the provider's work of preparing and submitting your formation document, with the state's fee on top. Some plans add a few extras for good; others add trial items or sell extras as add-ons.

The table below lists each provider that publishes a plan with no service fee, in the order of our rating (ties go to Tailor Brands, Bizee, ZenBusiness, then by name), with the items each plan includes for a limited time and what they cost afterward.

The plans differ more than the shared price suggests. Tailor Brands Lite is $0 and lists its Business coaching platform and Sales & payments tools next to a bookkeeping trial. Its stated processing is 14 business days, against 1 business day on the paid tiers. The Tailor Brands review covers what each tier adds.²

LegalZoom lists its Basic plan at $0, with State filing (Articles of Organization), a Company name check service and a Tax consult from 1-800Accountant. It publishes no trial item on Basic. Its pricing page may have changed since our records were gathered, so check the LegalZoom pricing page for the tiers as we recorded them.³

Bizee Basic ($0) bundles a registered agent for the first year and the first month of a virtual address, but it has the slowest stated time of the group at 4 to 6 weeks. ZenBusiness Starter ($0, which does not renew) includes Name availability search and Personal Velo® AI guidance, with a stated time of 7-10 business days.^{1, 4, 5}

Swyft Filings Basic is $0 and starts with trials of its compliance and legal document services. Inc Authority's Free LLC is $0, states a processing time of 24 hours and adds a registered agent that bills from the second year.^{6, 7}

Which state fees does a free plan leave you to pay?

You pay the state's LLC filing fee on every free plan in the table above. The state sets that fee, not the service, though some states charge one amount online and another on paper.

50 of 51 states publish this in the official sources we checked. Each state's page has the full detail.

The spread is wide. Montana charges $35 and Kentucky $40, while Texas charges $300 and Massachusetts $500. On a free plan, a Massachusetts LLC still costs more up front than any paid plan in our records bought for Montana.^{8, 9, 10, 11}

Some states add a cost a service can't remove. New York requires a new LLC to publish its Articles or a notice in two newspapers chosen by the county clerk for six consecutive weeks, then file a Certificate of Publication ($50) within 120 days, and none of the free plans lists publication among its items. California's filing fee is $70, but every California LLC also owes the Franchise Tax Board an annual tax of $800, which the California LLC guide explains. Faster state processing is sold separately too; Texas lists Texas Express: Standard Expedited $50 (typically 2 to 3 business days), Next-Day $500, Same-Day $750 per document, plus the filing fee, as described in the Texas LLC guide.^{12, 13, 14, 15}

The state fees table shows each state's filing fee beside its recurring fee, and the cost calculator adds them to each plan.

Which free items start billing later?

Every free plan in our records except LegalZoom Basic includes at least one item that is free only for a set period and then renews at a published price.

• Tailor Brands' bookkeeping and invoicing trial expires after 30 days; after that, you’ll be charged $39/month.¹⁶
• Bizee's registered agent is free for the first year, then costs $149/year. The virtual address is free for the first month and then $29/month, and continuing is optional.^{17, 18}
• ZenBusiness lists its website builder as "Included FREE for 30 days" and says it "Renews at $15/mo." Starter's optional free year of Worry-Free Compliance renews at $199/yr.^{1, 19}
• Swyft Filings' ComplianceGuard starts with a 14-day free trial and then bills $199/year. Its legal document suite has a free period (Basic and Standard 1 month); in our records, what applies after the free period is not stated.^{20, 21}
• At Inc Authority, the included registered agent auto-renews at $249/yr after year 1; the provider's own form page says "Cancel within the first 12-months to avoid charges."^{22, 23}

Some trials carry real work. Swyft's ComplianceGuard and ZenBusiness's compliance year both cover filing the state's annual report, so when they end, the filing becomes yours unless you keep paying. The annual report guide explains what each state asks for.

A registered agent trial ending is a different kind of risk, because some states tie a missing agent to ending the LLC. In Texas, failing to keep an agent may lead to involuntary termination of a domestic LLC, and in Kentucky, going without one is grounds for administrative dissolution if without a registered office or agent in Kentucky for 60 days or more. Bizee's terms, for example, let you cancel its agent by assigning a new registered agent with the state and notifying Bizee of the change. The registered agent guide covers who can serve, and cancelling or switching a service covers the order of steps.^{24, 25, 26}

Which add-ons are sold alongside free plans?

The extras sold next to free plans include an EIN filing, an operating agreement and an upgrade to a paid tier. Each has a published price you can compare with getting the same thing elsewhere or on your own.

The EIN is the clearest case, because the IRS states its position plainly (free; the IRS never charges a fee for an EIN). Online, the process is to apply with the IRS online tool; if approved, the EIN is issued immediately online. The tool asks for the responsible party's SSN or ITIN. Services still charge to apply for you: Inc Authority lists $49 (standalone service), Bizee $70, LegalZoom $79 and ZenBusiness $99 one-time. Whether a single-member LLC needs its own EIN depends on its situation; the IRS says a single-member LLC needs its own EIN if it has any employees or must file certain excise tax forms; otherwise it generally uses the owner's SSN or EIN for income tax. The EIN guide goes through when one is required.^{27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32}

An operating agreement costs $89 at Inc Authority, $99 at Bizee and $99 one-time at ZenBusiness, and LegalZoom's start at $99. The operating agreement guide covers what it does and whether your state asks for one.^{5, 31, 33, 34}

A paid tier is the largest of these extras. Bizee's next tier is a one-time $199 and adds an EIN and an operating agreement. ZenBusiness Pro is $199 and renews at $199/yr. LegalZoom lists its middle plan at $249, and it includes an advisor service that auto-renews at $49/mo after 30 days. The package contents guide compares what each tier keeps for good, and the full plan list shows them side by side.^{1, 3, 4}

What does a free LLC cost in the second year?

In year two you owe the state's recurring report fee or tax, if your state has one, plus whatever trial items you kept. Bizee, ZenBusiness, Swyft Filings and Inc Authority list the free formation itself as one-time, with no renewal.

The state part varies more than the service part. Massachusetts charges $500 each year for its report. California's Statement of Information costs $20 and is filed within 90 days of formation, then every two years, but the yearly LLC tax of $800 is the larger bill. Montana's report is $0 if filed January 1 to April 15 (fee waived); $35 after April 15. Texas LLCs file a franchise tax report with a Public Information Report each year, due May 15, and there is no tax due at or below the $2,650,000 revenue threshold.^{11, 13, 14, 35, 36, 37}

On the service side, the Bizee and Inc Authority free plans have a registered agent renewal built in. Bizee's agent costs $149/year from the second year and Inc Authority's $249/year. ZenBusiness Starter doesn't list an agent; ZenBusiness sells one at 50% off the first year ($99) when you form, then $199/yr. Being your own agent avoids that cost if you meet the state's rules, though your address then goes on the public record.^{17, 22, 38}

The services with the lowest cost over the first and second year are listed in that order, and the cheapest formation services list explains how a zero service fee compares with a low one-time fee.

Can you get money back from a free plan order?

With no service fee to return, the money at stake on a free plan order is the state fee and any paid extras. Each provider's terms treat that money differently.

Bizee says orders are generally refundable until payment is forwarded to a government entity, which happens soon after you order. Inc Authority offers a 60-day money-back guarantee on initial online purchase, less fees already paid to the state or partners. Swyft Filings publishes no time window, and its help page says "Billing questions should be evaluated by charge type and order status." Both Bizee's and Inc Authority's terms tie the refund to whether the state fee has already gone to the state.^{23, 26, 39}