What it costs
Most of the price is not the filing fee
The state charges what it charges, and that part is published. What varies between one business and the next is everything bolted to it, and the year-two figure almost nobody quotes.
The sheet
Every line, no figures
Nothing is published yet. These are the lines the write-ups cost out. The figure columns are deliberately open — a number here would be pricing we have not gathered.
State filing fee
Set by statute, published by the filing office, and payable however the filing reaches them.
Service fee
What a formation service charges on top. The line with the widest spread between providers.
Registered agent
Commonly included for twelve months, then annual. The single biggest year-two surprise.
Periodic report
Annual or biennial depending on the state, and due whether or not the business traded.
Corrections and amendments
A rejected name, a changed address, a new agent. Usually billed per filing, and easy to forget.
No total is struck. Fees differ by state and prices move, so a figure without a state and a date beside it would be worse than none.
Ground rules
How costs are stated here
Every figure is dated and sourced
State charges and service prices both move. Anything specific carries where it came from and when it was read.
Year two is quoted with year one
A first-year price without the renewal beside it is not a price.
Nothing is scored
No ratings and no value grades. Cheapest and best are not the same question, and neither is settled by a number.
Affiliate links are disclosed
Some links earn a commission. It never changes a figure, and it is stated wherever it applies.