Best LLC services in South Carolina (2026)

How are LLC services for South Carolina ranked?

Providers are listed by our rating, highest first. When providers rate the same, the tie goes in our editorial order: Tailor Brands, then Bizee (formerly Incfile), then ZenBusiness, then the rest by name.

Each first-year figure adds the $110 fee for the Articles of Organization to the plan we compare. The second-year column is a complete South Carolina total too: the state charges $0 in year two for an LLC on default tax treatment, so that column is just the plan's renewal.^{1, 3}

Second year: the recurring South Carolina report fee as the state lists it (some states charge it every two years) plus the plan's renewal, if it renews. Registered agent renewals are extra unless the plan includes the agent for good.

The list has ties. Bizee (formerly Incfile) and ZenBusiness share a rating of 8.0, and BizFilings and Rocket Lawyer share 6.8. The rating weighs customer satisfaction, services and dashboard, and plan value, and none of those parts changes by state. The rating method gives the weights.

Read the second-year column with care. A plan that shows $0 there, such as LegalZoom Managed Service, may still bill for items that started as trials, and an agent included for a limited time renews outside these totals. Yearly plans carry a price into year two. ZenBusiness Premium shows $299, its published renewal. doola Starter shows $297, which assumes today's price, since doola says its plans renew at rates then in effect. The list ordered by cost across both years ranks every provider on that basis.⁴

Which South Carolina LLC service fits which need?

The picks below each follow from one published fact. South Carolina's lack of an annual report for default-taxed LLCs changes how some of them read, and the subsections say where.

• Lowest first-year total in South Carolina: Inc Authority, Free LLC, $110 with the state fee.
• Lowest two-year total in South Carolina: Inc Authority, Free LLC, $110 over two years with state fees. Full list
• Fastest filing: Tailor Brands, 1 business day stated on Elite. Full list
• Best for first-time founders: Tailor Brands, all three supports included in a plan (annual report filing, coaching, AI guidance). Full list
• Best all-in-one platform: Tailor Brands, sells 9 of the 10 business service types we track, with an online dashboard. Full list
• Best for non-U.S. founders: Tailor Brands, highest-rated provider whose own pages say it serves founders outside the U.S. Full list

Each line is decided by the published fact it names. First-time founder support counts an annual report filed for you, business coaching and AI guidance; the all-in-one count is the business service types a provider sells nationally.

Lowest cost across the first and second year

Inc Authority Free LLC has the lowest first-year total, $110, which equals the state fee, and its second-year total is $0. Because South Carolina charges nothing in year two for an LLC on default tax treatment, its plan has the lowest total across both years in the table. The cost that remains is the agent, free for the first year and then $249/year. Its terms let you cancel anytime by phone or email, though a cancellation may require proof of new agent or dissolution. An owner who names a different agent before the renewal date can avoid that charge.^{2, 5}

Northwest Registered Agent comes next at $149 in year one and $0 in year two, with an agent that renews at $125/yr. The Inc Authority pricing page and Northwest's profile list the add-ons each one sells.⁶

First-time founders and the missing report

The founder supports we count are an annual report filed for you, business coaching from a person, and AI guidance. Tailor Brands includes all three supports: mandatory report filing on Essential and Elite, its Business Coaching Program on every plan, and an AI assistant, since every plan comes with Navi built in. ZenBusiness includes all three supports: filing of state-required annual reports on Pro and Premium, Personal Velo AI guidance on every plan, and a one-on-one consultation on Premium.^{7, 8, 9, 10, 11}

In South Carolina the first of those supports has less to do. The Department of Revenue says an LLC not taxed as a corporation is not subject to the annual report or the License Fee, so a plan's report filing has no state report to file for it. Coaching and AI guidance carry the same weight here as anywhere. An LLC that elects corporate tax treatment does file, starting with the CL-1 Initial Annual Report, and neither provider's plan pages say whether their filing covers that Department of Revenue report. The first-time founders list shows which supports each provider includes.³

Fastest stated filing

Tailor Brands and ZenBusiness each state 1 business day on their compared plans, and Inc Authority states 24 hours. The state doesn't publish a processing time or a paid rush tier in our record, so those claims cover the service's side of the filing only. See the fastest filing list.

Registered agent included, and for how long

South Carolina requires an agent who is, in the statute's words, "an individual resident of this State" or a qualifying company, so an owner living elsewhere needs a service or a resident. These plans include one for a set period.¹²

• Bizee (formerly Incfile): the first year, then $149/year.¹³
• Northwest Registered Agent: the first year, then $125/yr.⁶
• Inc Authority: the first year, then $249/year.²
• BizFilings: 3 months free, then $220/yr.^{14, 15}

doola lists Registered Agent Service in Starter, a plan billed every year. Tailor Brands sells an agent separately at $199/year, ZenBusiness gives 50% off the first year ($99) with formation, and Swyft Filings prices its agent at $149 per quarter. The registered agent included list puts these side by side.^{16, 17, 18, 19}

One provider for everything after formation

Of the 10 business service types we track, Tailor Brands sells 9 and LegalZoom sells 9. Selling a service is not the same as including it in a plan, and the all-in-one platforms list explains the count.

Founders outside the U.S.

doola says it accepts non-U.S. founders, and its Starter plan includes a US business address. LegalZoom says a founder can form with no Social Security number, residency, or travel required. Tailor Brands links a separate sign-up flow for non-US citizens but publishes no eligibility terms. The non-U.S. founders list covers the rest.^{20, 21, 22}

What does South Carolina charge no matter who files?

South Carolina charges $110 for the Articles of Organization whether you file or a service does. Reserving a name first adds $25.^{1, 23}

None of the plans we compare publishes the state fee as part of its price, so every total here adds it.

• Formation filing fee: $110
• No recurring annual report
• Optional name reservation: $25 for a nonrenewable 120-day period

After formation, the state asks little of an LLC that keeps its default tax setup. Such an LLC pays $0 a year to the state. One that elects corporate tax treatment pays the corporate License Fee (minimum $25) and files reports with the Department of Revenue, and no service removes that cost.³

A name reservation lasts for a nonrenewable 120-day period, so it only helps if you choose a service and file within that window.²³

What should South Carolina owners check before paying for compliance?

Plan features built around a yearly report are worth less where no report is due. That is the main way South Carolina changes the comparison.

Northwest Registered Agent is one example. Its agent customers are automatically enrolled in Compliance Services, its annual report service, priced at $100 + state fees, charged at filing. For an LLC with no South Carolina report, ask whether anything would be filed or charged before you sign up.^{24, 25}

Trial items are the other thing to check, since they bill whatever state you form in. Tailor Brands Elite includes a bookkeeping trial that then costs $39/month, and LegalZoom lists that on Managed Service its Business Advisor Plan auto-renews at $49/mo after 30 days. The LegalZoom pricing breakdown and the Tailor Brands pricing page list each later charge.^{26, 27}

Can you form a South Carolina LLC without a service?

Yes. The Secretary of State takes the Articles of Organization directly, online in SC Business Entities Online or by paper form, and you pay only the $110 fee.^{1, 28}

Doing it yourself leaves the agent and the tax choice to you. You name an agent who meets S.C. Code Ann. § 33-44-108, which can be you if you live in the state. The other is tax treatment, which decides whether the LLC owes anything to the state later, and an accountant can advise on that choice. The South Carolina formation guide covers each filing, and the cost calculator shows what a plan adds.¹²