FormByStateTool
LLC cost calculator
Two ways to form an LLC, priced with the same state. File it yourself and the state is nearly the only payee. Hire a provider and they fill in the form, act as your registered agent, and send the yearly reminders. Pick your state once and both calculators price it.
True cost calculator
One state, two ways to form. Price both and compare.
Calculator 1: File it yourself
You fill in the state form yourself, so no provider is paid for the filing work. The only choice is who acts as registered agent.
An EIN is free from the IRS, so it adds $0 on this route.
Calculator 2: Let a provider do it for you
The provider fills in the form, acts as your registered agent, and sends the yearly filing reminders. This is the hand holding route.
See Northwest Registered Agent pricing
Year one is what you pay when you form the LLC. Every year after is the state fees and agent fees that repeat annually to keep it active. You pay the state year by year, so there is no single multi year payment and no discount for paying ahead.
Every route in your state, side by side
| Provider | Plan | Total, first year | Paid to the state, first year | Paid to the provider, first year | Total, every year after | Paid to the state, every year | Paid to the provider, every year |
|---|
Paid to the state is the filing fee, plus any annual report fee or yearly state fee. Paid to the provider is what the provider named in the first column charges: its plan price, the registered agent, and any add ons you turned on. On the file yourself row there is no provider, so that column is what a hired registered agent charges.
How the calculator counts
The calculator reads the same state data as the state pages and the same service prices as the comparison pages. For the state side, it adds the formation fee, any report fee that falls in year one, and any annual state fee. For the every year after figure, it counts the report fee spread across its filing cycle, based on the state rule for the first filing, plus any annual state fee. For the service side, it adds the plan price and the registered agent cost for year one, the renewal price for every year after, and any add ons you turn on.
An employer identification number, often called an EIN, comes from the Internal Revenue Service at no charge when you apply yourself. The calculator shows it as a fixed line at zero dollars so no route gets credit or blame for it.
A worked example
Take Texas on the do it yourself route. The state formation fee is 300 dollars. Texas charges no fee for its annual report in our data, and Texas has no annual state fee in our data, so the state side is 300 dollars in year one and zero dollars every year after. Pick a paid service instead and its plan price and agent renewal stack on top of that same 300 dollars, which is why the results table separates what you pay the state from what you pay the provider on every row. Run the example above by choosing Texas and reading the file it yourself panel.
The point of the split is the decision it makes easy. State fees do not change when you change services. Only the service column moves. If two services file the same form in the same state, the paid to the provider columns are the honest places to compare them.
Frequently asked questions
Why does the calculator show two totals?
Because some LLC costs are paid once and others repeat every year. The first year total counts the state filing fee, the service plan price, and the first year of registered agent service. The every year after figure counts the report fee, any annual state fee, and agent renewal, the charges that keep the LLC active each year. A route that looks cheap in year one can cost the most every year after, and the second figure is the one that shows it.
Are state fees the same on every route?
Yes. The state charges its formation fee, report fee and any annual fee the same way whether you file yourself or pay a service. That is why the results table separates what you pay the state from what you pay the provider.
Why is the EIN listed at zero dollars?
The Internal Revenue Service issues an employer identification number free when you apply yourself. Some services charge to file the same application for you, and the calculator does not count that charge in the base totals.
Where do the prices come from?
Service prices were checked on merchant pricing pages on October 25, 2026. State fees come from state filing offices. Prices change, so confirm the checkout total before you pay.