Historically, incorporating a business has been a time-consuming and expensive process. Business owners had to hire attorneys, fill out complicated paperwork, and wait months before their legal entity was officially formed.

But not everyone has thousands of dollars laying around to hire a lawyer, and most people aren’t comfortable filing incorporation paperwork on their own.

The solution? Online incorporation services.

With an online incorporation service, anyone can form a C-corp, S-corp, nonprofit, or other corporate entity types directly from their computer.

Just answer a few basic questions about your business, and the service provider will handle the rest. Online incorporation services prepare and file your incorporation documents directly with your specific Secretary of State. They also provide crucial resources like legal consulting and registered agent services.

In short, you can get everything you need to form a legal business entity from an online incorporation service—fast and cheap.

But which one is the best? I’ve identified and reviewed the best online incorporation services on the market today. Use this guide to determine the perfect option for you and your business.

The Top 7 Best Online Incorporation Services

1. LegalZoom – Most popular online incorporation services
2. Incfile – Best cheap incorporation services
3. Northwest Registered Agent – Best customer service
4. ZenBusiness – Best incorporation service for simplicity
5. Incorporate.com – Most versatile
6. MyCorporation – Best for small business
7. Swyft Filings – Best for nonprofits

The following reviews contain more information about the use cases, benefits, packages, and pricing for each service on our list:

#1 – LegalZoom — Most Popular Online Incorporation Services

More than 400,000 businesses across the country have used LegalZoom to incorporate. It’s a reliable, reputable, and fast way to start your business.

You’ve got two options when you incorporate with LegalZoom—S corporation or C corporation.

While many customers choose to be an S-corp, you shouldn’t feel like you’re bound by one or the other. You can always convert to a C-corp at a later time.

Getting started is easy. Just answer a few simple questions about your business, like its name and location; LegalZoom handles the rest. They’ll complete your paperwork and file everything with your Secretary of State.

There are three incorporation packages available:

• Economy — $149 + state fees
• Standard — $329 + state fees
• Express Gold — $349 + state fees

All plans come with a business name check, incorporation filing, articles of incorporation, and lifetime customer support. The Standard package includes a deluxe organizer binder, official stock certificates, a company seal, and expedited processing.

If you’re in a rush to incorporate, the Express Gold package offers rush processing and express shipping.

LegalZoom’s incorporation services are backed by a 100% satisfaction guarantee.

#2 – Incfile — Best Cheap Online Incorporation Services

If you’re looking for the cheapest possible way to form your corporation, look no further than Incfile.

They offer incorporation services starting at $0, where you only pay the state filing fees.

More than 500,000 businesses have used Incfile to get started. All incorporation packages (including the free one) come with the following services:

• Company name verification
• Preparation and filing of incorporation articles
• Free registered agent for one year
• Next business day processing
• Lifetime support
• Online access to incorporation documents
• Free tax consultation
• Online order tracking
• Lifetime company alerts

Incfile also offers paid packages with services like EIN filings, corporate bylaws, corporate organizational meeting minutes, expedited filing, IRS form 2553, business contract templates, and more. These start at $149 + state fees.

But in terms of value, you won’t find a better deal than Incfile’s free incorporation package.

#3 – Northwest Registered Agent — Best Customer Service

As the name implies, Northwest Registered Agent is best known for its registered agent services. But the company also provides business formation plans, including online incorporation services.

Northwest Registered agent goes above and beyond to provide the best support in the business formation industry.

All packages come with corporate guides. These are local business experts who walk you through the process of starting and maintaining your corporation. You’ll have lifetime access to this service whenever you need assistance.

Every order comes with:

• Same business day filing
• Corporate bylaws
• Registered agent service
• Corporate membership certificates
• Stock certificates
• Corporate resolutions

You can add-on extras like an EIN (tax ID), S corporation election, premium mail forwarding, certificate of good standing, virtual office, and more.

Incorporation plans start at $225 + state fees. Get started with Northwest Registered Agent today.

#4 – ZenBusiness — Best Online Incorporation Services for Simplicity

ZenBusiness is a bit newer compared to some of the other incorporation services on our list. But they are quickly growing in popularity thanks to low costs, excellent service, and a simple formation process.

For those of you looking for a fast and easy way to incorporate, ZenBusiness has you covered.

After you fill out an online application, ZenBusiness files your incorporation documents with your Secretary of State. Once approved, all of your documents will be easily accessible from your personalized online dashboard.

One unique standout of ZenBusiness is its value. All plans come with a free registered agent service for one year. Here’s a closer look at the packages and price points:

• Starter — $49 + state fees
• Pro — $199 + state fees
• Premium — $299 + state fees

In addition to the free registered agent and incorporation filing service, the Starter package also includes your corporate bylaws. An EIN, banking resolution template, and expedited filing are included at the Pro level.

The Premium package offers many things you may not need (at least not from an online incorporation service), like a domain name, website, and business email address. However, this plan does come with the fastest filing speeds.

Overall, ZenBusiness is still a top choice to consider for any business that needs to incorporate.

#5 – Incorporate.com — Most Versatile Online Incorporation Services

With a name like Incorporate.com, it’s no surprise to see this online incorporation service rank so high on our list.

The company has gone through a few name changes over the years. They went from Corporation Service Company to The Company Corporation before finally settling on Incorporate.com. To date, they’ve helped form 750,000 businesses (including LLCs).

Whether you’re launching an S corporation, C corporation, or nonprofit, Incorporate.com has you covered.

The online application process is seamless. Just provide them with some vital information about you and your business, and the experts at Incorporate.com handle everything from there. If you have questions or need assistance during the process, their support staff is available day or night with solutions.

Here’s a quick overview of the plans and pricing:

• The Starter — $99 + state fees
• The Essentials — $249 + state fees
• The Works — $349 + state fees

The entry-level plan comes with the basics, like the completion and filing of your corporation documents. Go for The Essentials plan if you want an EIN (tax ID), annual report preparation and filing, and a corporate kit. The Works includes all Essentials services, plus a business license research package and corporate bylaws.

Incorporate.com also offers registered agent services to keep you compliant post-launch.

#6 – MyCorporation — Best Incorporation Services for Small Business

MyCorporation has been around for over 20 years. They’ve helped form and grow more than one million businesses across all 50 states throughout that time.

They offer online incorporation services for S-corps, C-corps, nonprofits, and professional corporations (such as physicians and lawyers).

To get started, just choose your entity type and state. Answer a few simple questions, and leave everything else to MyCorporation.

Let’s take a closer look at the corporate formation packages:

• Basics — $99 + state fees
• Standard — $124 + state fees
• Deluxe — $224 + state fees
• Premium — $324 + state fees

If you’re looking for the bare minimum, the Basic plan offers a name availability search and your articles of incorporation. The Standard package gives you a bit more, with corporate bylaws, corporate meeting minutes, waivers, and annual report service.

The most popular package is the Deluxe, as it includes MyCorporation’s registered agent services (something you need to have).

MyCorporation has additional services for things like DBAs, business licenses, trademark filing, copyright applications, and so much more.

#7 – Swyft Filings — Best Online Incorporation Service for Nonprofits

Swyft Filings is another company with a wide range of business formation services.

While C-corps and S-corps are available from pretty much every online incorporation service, Swyft Filings helps accommodate the needs of nonprofit corporations in addition to the others.

To be clear, Swyft Filings isn’t the only place you can incorporate a nonprofit—it’s just the most straightforward and convenient. They offer a ton of different resources specifically for nonprofits. If it’s your first time going through this process, you can learn more about the advantages of a nonprofit, raising capital, and tax exemptions from their site.

Whether you’re forming a nonprofit, S-corp, or C-corp, the incorporation package rates remain the same:

• Basic — $49 + state fees
• Standard — $149 + state fees
• Premium — $299 + state fees

All plans come with lifetime support, free shipping, real-time status tracking, company name availability verification, articles of incorporation, and online access to your incorporation documents.

The Standard package includes an EIN, custom corporate bylaws, custom corporation meetings, and custom corporate banking resolution. For FedEx shipping, a custom corporate kit, and electronic document delivery, you’ll need to sign up for the Premium package.

A 100% money-back guarantee backs all Swyft Filing incorporation packages.

How to Find the Best Online Incorporation Services For You

With so many online incorporation services to choose from, narrowing down your options can feel a bit overwhelming. But there are certain factors you can use to determine the best service for your corporation.

This is the methodology I used to pick the winners listed above. You can use the same evaluation method as you’re shopping around and weighing different options.

Value

Price and value are not the same things.

It’s easy just to find the cheapest package and make your selection. But low cost doesn’t necessarily equate to high value.

Some online incorporation services advertise low entry-level pricing. But what do you actually get for that price? Usually, it’s not very much. In many cases, your order total will quickly rise as you start adding must-have services to your plan, such as an EIN or expedited filing. Other providers might have more expensive plans, but those typically include everything you need.

Customer Support

When it comes to something as important as incorporating your business, customer support cannot be overlooked.

What happens if you have a question during the application process? Who do you contact if you need help accessing crucial paperwork? Will your incorporation service be there when you need them most?

The best online incorporation services offer friendly and helpful support via phone, email, and live chat. Don’t expect their support team to be available 24/7, but you should at least be able to reach them during business hours.

Ease of Use

Generally speaking, most online incorporation services offer the same basic thing. You navigate to the website, fill out some forms, and let them handle the state filing process.

But the experience of using one site compared to another can be as different as night and day.

Some forms can be completed in just five or ten minutes. The questions are straightforward, and everything is transparent. Once the order has been submitted, you should be able to track the status of your filing and access your incorporation documents from a user-friendly dashboard.

Filing Time

The exact amount of time it takes to incorporate your business will vary based on several factors. Each state has a different process. So, depending on your location, the standard filing time could range anywhere from a few days to a few weeks.

With that said, your state can’t process any applications until the incorporation service files your paperwork. Some online incorporation services process orders on the same day or the next business day. Others aren’t in as much of a hurry.

You can usually pay extra to expedite your corporation filings, however. These rates will vary depending on your state and the service you’re using. In some cases, the added cost isn’t really worth it.

Registered Agent Services

Every corporation needs to have a registered agent. Your registered agent will accept any service of process on your behalf and receive tax documents and legal documents for your corporation.

The best registered agents will let you access these documents from an online account while also forwarding the physical copies to your location. They also notify you directly of anything that requires your immediate attention.

If you’re using an online service to incorporate, it makes sense to use the same service for a registered agent. Sometimes this will automatically be included in your package, but you’ll usually have to add it for an extra fee.

Additional Resources

Aside from the business formation plans, some online incorporation services offer additional resources to businesses. I’m referring to things like legal consulting, tax planning, legal document templates, business contracts, and more.

Features like business name availability search, DBA (doing business as) names, EIN filings, trademark search, business licenses, seller’s permits, certificates of good standing, franchise disclosures, and more should all be taken into consideration as well.

Your online incorporation service can essentially become a one-stop-shop for a wide range of corporate needs.

Conclusion

The best online incorporation service truly depends on what you’re looking for. Here’s a quick recap of the top recommendations on my list.

1. LegalZoom – Most popular online incorporation services
2. Incfile – Best cheap incorporation services
3. Northwest Registered Agent – Best customer service
4. ZenBusiness – Best incorporation service for simplicity
5. Incorporate.com – Most versatile
6. MyCorporation – Best for small business
7. Swyft Filings – Best for nonprofits

Every option on my list boasts great all-around functionality. But each excels in certain areas, making them uniquely perfect for an individual business’ needs.

Whether you want the white-glove service of Northwest Registered Agent, the budget-friendliness of ZenBusiness or Incfile, the small business focus and free EIN of MyCorporation, or the non-profit expertise of Swyft Filings, there’s an option for everyone here.

Source: quicksprout

Best Online Incorporation Services