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Formation ClassClass is in session: LLC paperwork, state by state.

Classes for new owners

Step-by-step LLC classes for all 50 states

Short, plain classes on forming an LLC, naming a registered agent and registering in another state. Each fact comes from the state's own forms and fee schedules, and each class ends with the services we would hire.

Start with a class

1

Starting an LLC

From the name search to the first yearly report, using each state's official form, fee and rules.

50 lessons

Browse all 50 classes
2

Registered agents

Every state's registered agent rules, taught in plain assignments.

50 lessons

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3

Registering in another state

Growing into a second state: a class for each one.

50 lessons

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How an LLC comes to exist

  1. 1

    Name the LLC

    Check the state register before you file.

  2. 2

    Choose your agent

    Someone with a street address in the state who signs for legal papers.

  3. 3

    Send in the filing

    Fees vary widely from state to state.

  4. 4

    Apply for your EIN

    Banks will ask for it.

  5. 5

    Sign an operating agreement

    Ownership and decision rules, kept with the records.

  6. 6

    Keep up with recurring filings

    Your state's class has the dates.

Recommended services, nationwide

1 LLC Services Mainstay Filing Class favorite 2 Registered Agents Mainstay Filing Class favorite 3 Foreign Registration Services Mainstay Filing Class favorite

How we grade

The grading rubric

Read how we grade
  1. Tuition across three years (30%): What a service bills over years one, two and three, built from its published first-year and renewal prices.
  2. Homework the price does (34%): How much class homework the price completes: the formation or registration filing, the registered agent seat, the recurring state report and the EIN application.
  3. Year-two tuition (10%): The tuition from year two on and whether it changes.
  4. Fit with the state class (16%): How well the plan fits what the state class covers: report timing, the cost of a late filing, the agent address rule and whether a second state could be next.
  5. Fees a student can read (10%): Whether a student can read the whole fee before paying, with the state fee on its own line at the amount the state sets.

States A to Z

AlabamaIdahoMinnesotaNorth DakotaVermontColoradoKentuckyNevadaRhode IslandWyomingHawaiiMichiganNorth CarolinaUtahCaliforniaKansasNebraskaPennsylvaniaWisconsinGeorgiaMassachusettsNew YorkTexasArkansasIowaMontanaOregonWest VirginiaFloridaMarylandNew MexicoTennesseeArizonaIndianaMissouriOklahomaWashingtonDelawareMaineNew JerseySouth DakotaAlaskaIllinoisMississippiOhioVirginiaConnecticutLouisianaNew HampshireSouth Carolina