Contributor

The Editors

Staff, Incorporator.org

Our editorial team — lawyers, formerly-practicing attorneys, and founders who have each filed more than one U.S. entity. We name an individual author when a single person wrote the piece; when a guide is the product of the desk, the byline reads "The Editors." Everything under this byline has been reviewed by at least two humans before publication. We cite primary sources — Secretary of State fee schedules, state statutes, IRS notices — and we update pieces when the law moves. Mistakes happen; when we find one, we fix it and say so in the footer. We do not accept payment for coverage. Affiliate relationships are disclosed in-line and every ranking is locked before outreach. If a service asks for a better spot, the answer is no.

Articles by The Editors

West Virginia LLC formation: the Mountain State guide
A $100 filing, a cheap $25 annual report, and a simplified 2022 tax overhaul — why West Virginia is quietly getting easier for small founders.
Virginia LLC formation: the Old Dominion guide
Modest fees, a corporate income tax, and a business-friendly SCC — what founders actually need to know about Virginia.
Stripe Atlas review (2026)
The right answer for a Delaware C-Corp that will raise venture capital, and a poor answer for almost anything else. $500 flat, no upsell ladder.
Stripe Atlas review: the $500 venture-track Delaware C-Corp in a box
YC and accelerator-default, integrated banking, and the 83(b) mailing done for you. An honest look at who Stripe Atlas is and is not for.
Series LLCs: which states, when they work, when they don't
The eighteen jurisdictions that allow the structure, the cases where it genuinely cuts overhead, and the three scenarios where founders consistently get it wrong.
Ohio LLC: to file, no annual report, and the CAT to understand
One of the cheapest LLCs to maintain in the country — a $99 filing fee and no annual report — balanced against the Commercial Activity Tax on gross receipts over $3M.
LLC vs S-Corp: when the election actually pays
The S-corp election doesn't change your legal entity — it changes your tax return. The math only works above a specific profit threshold. Here is where that line sits in 2026.
Rocket Lawyer Review (2026): Formation as the Gateway Drug
The LLC filing is fine. The real product is a $39.99/month legal subscription.
Inc Authority Review (2026): Free Formation, Aggressive Upsells
The $0 price tag is real. Whether you walk out paying $0 is another question.
MyCompanyWorks Review (2026): The Quiet Workhorse
Unglamorous, well-supported, and transparent about what things cost.
LegalZoom review (2026)
The most-recognized brand in online entity formation is also the most-upsold. The free tier exists; getting out on it does not happen by accident.
LLC vs C-Corp: which, when, and why
A C-corp costs more to run and is taxed twice. It is still the right structure for venture-backed startups — and, after the 2025 QSBS expansion, for some companies that would never have considered one.
North Dakota LLC: a low-friction home-state filing
$135 to file, $50 annual report, some of the lowest individual income tax rates in the country, and a well-designed Secretary of State portal. Why North Dakota works for residents.
How to Form an LLC in Iowa (2026 Guide)
Filing the Certificate of Organization with the Iowa Secretary of State, paying the $50 fee, and filing the $60 biennial report.
How to form an LLC in Georgia
A $100 filing fee, a $50 annual report, and an online portal that works. Georgia is a quietly good state in which to form — predictable, cheap, and without gotchas.
How to form an LLC in Florida
A $125 filing fee, no state income tax on individuals, and Sunbiz — one of the better state filing portals in the country. Florida is the canonical business-friendly sunbelt state, and for residents, it delivers.
How to form an LLC in Connecticut
A $120 filing fee, an $80 annual report, and one of the country's stricter pass-through tax regimes. Connecticut is a fine home state to form in — and a bad choice for anyone who isn't from here.
Harvard Business Services review (2026)
Forty-five years of Delaware-only practice, a flat $229 formation, and the cheapest registered-agent renewal in the industry at $50 a year.
How to form an LLC in Colorado
A $50 filing fee and an online-only Secretary of State. The cheapest flagship state in the country — and one of the most pleasant to work with.
Form an LLC in California (2026)
The $70 Articles of Organization, the $800 annual franchise tax, the gross-receipts fee tiers, and the AB 85 exemption that already expired.
Firstbase Review (2026): The Default for Non-US Founders
Bundled formation + EIN + US banking for international founders — but you're paying for the bundle.
Form an LLC in Arizona (2026)
The $50 Articles of Organization, the newspaper publication rule (Maricopa and Pima exempted), and the new Arizona Business Center portal.
Form an LLC in Arkansas (2026)
The $45 Certificate of Organization, the flat $150 franchise tax, and the filing routed to the Secretary of State instead of the DFA.
Converting an LLC to a C-Corp: what it costs, when to do it
Delaware statutory conversion, state-law merger, and the F-reorganization — three mechanics, one clean outcome, and the VC-timing question most founders get wrong.
District of Columbia LLC formation: the UBT trap
A $99 filing, a $300 biennial report — and a 8.25% Unincorporated Business Tax that catches most solo founders by surprise. The D.C. guide.
Annual reports: all 51 jurisdictions (2026)
A reference table of LLC annual report fees, deadlines, and Secretary of State links for all 50 states plus DC — with notes on the traps worth knowing.
Bizee review (2026)
Formerly IncFile, still the lowest year-one cost in the category — and, as usual in this category, the best deal has the noisiest checkout.
Wyoming LLC formation: the founder's privacy state
The state that invented the LLC in 1977 — still the strongest package of privacy, low cost, and charging-order protection in the country. A founder's deep-dive.
North Carolina LLC: a well-run state with a corporate tax glide path
to file, annual report due April 15, and a scheduled elimination of corporate income tax by 2030. Who North Carolina fits and who it does not.
LegalZoom review: the brand tax, and what you actually get for it
The best-known LLC formation service in the U.S. is neither the cheapest nor the fastest. Here is an honest account of where LegalZoom earns its price and where it does not.
New Jersey LLC formation: a practical guide
$125 to file, $75 annual report, and a two-portal registration dance that trips up most first-time founders.
Harvard Business Services review: the Delaware specialist the lawyers quietly recommend
A family-owned Lewes agent with a $50-a-year registered agent fee. When Delaware is the right state, Harvard is usually the right filer.
Forming a U.S. LLC as a non-U.S. founder (2026)
ITINs, EINs without an SSN, the bank account problem, and the tax-treaty traps that catch out most international owners.
Form an LLC in Alaska (2026)
The $250 Articles of Organization, the separate $50 Business License, and the biennial report most owners miss.
How to Form an LLC in Indiana (2026 Guide)
Filing Articles of Organization with INBiz, paying the $95 fee, and filing the biennial business entity report.
How to Form an LLC in Idaho (2026 Guide)
Filing the Certificate of Organization with the Idaho Secretary of State, paying the $100 fee, and filing the free annual report.
ZenBusiness review (2026)
The cleanest $0 formation on the market, and a genuinely useful post-formation dashboard — if you can keep your thumb off the Pro-plan upsells.
New Hampshire LLC formation: a practical guide
$100 to file, $100 annual report, no sales tax — and two business-level taxes you need to know about.
New York LLC: the publication requirement gotcha
Forming an LLC in New York costs far more than the filing fee. The six-week publication requirement runs in rural counties and exceeds ,000 in Manhattan.
What is an LLC? The plain-English guide (2026)
A limited liability company is a legal wrapper around a business. The tax code treats it as whatever you want — that's the whole trick.
Wisconsin LLC formation: the Badger State guide
A $130 online filing, a $25 annual report, and Wisconsin's new Chapter 183 LLC statute — what founders need to know in 2026.
How to form an LLC in Delaware
Two-thirds of the Fortune 500 are incorporated in Delaware. Almost every founder who Googles "where should I incorporate" ends up here. Most of them shouldn't.
The LLC operating agreement: what it is and why you need one
Most states do not require an operating agreement. You still need one. Here is what an operating agreement does, what must be in it, and why even a single-member LLC without one is taking an avoidable risk.
How to Form an LLC in Illinois (2026 Guide)
Filing Articles of Organization with the Illinois Secretary of State, paying the $150 fee, and what the franchise tax phase-out means for new entities.
Nevada LLC formation: a practical guide
The tax haven with a $425 filing fee, a $350 annual bill, and a Modified Business Tax most blogs forget to mention.
Northwest Registered Agent review (2026)
The only national LLC service whose default posture is to put their address on the public filing, not yours — worth the small premium if privacy matters at all.
Form an LLC in Alabama (2026)
The $200 Certificate of Formation, the zeroed-out Business Privilege Tax, and the filings most vendors still get wrong.
New Mexico LLC: the honest privacy pick
The cheapest LLC filing in the country, with real but narrow anonymity. When a New Mexico LLC is the right tool, and when it is a trap.
How to get an EIN (free, 10 minutes, 2026)
The IRS gives you an Employer Identification Number free of charge. Here is the only process you need, and why you should never pay a third party to file it for you.
Nebraska LLC formation: a practical guide
$105 to file, $10 biennial report — and a newspaper publication requirement most founders forget.