Incfile is one of the most popular business formation services on the web. It’s a fast and easy way for anyone to start a business without the hassle and costs associated with hiring an attorney.
More than 250,000 businesses have launched with Incfile over the past 15+ years.
As a pioneer in the business formation industry, Incfile uses modern technology and provides exceptional customer service to entrepreneurs who need assistance in registering a new business.
This service provider is best known for its rock-bottom prices. In fact, you use Incfile to form your business for free (more on that later).
Not sure if Incfile is right for you? Fortunately, you’ve come to the right place. We’ll break down the service offerings, prices, packages, and everything else you need to know before making a decision. You’ll even learn more about what real customers are saying about Incfile.
Ready to get started? Sign up with Incfile today.
Incfile Business Formation Services
Incfile’s business formation services can be segmented into three main categories—LLC services, incorporation services, and registered agent services. We’ll cover each of these in greater detail below.
Incfile LLC Services
When it comes to forming a limited liability company (LLC) with Incfile, simplicity is the first thing that comes to mind. In just a handful of simple steps, they walk you through the entire process online.
Whether you’re looking for just the basics to get you started or a customized LLC kit, Incfile has you covered.
Every LLC package from Incfile comes with the following:
- Company name availability verification
- Articles preparation and filing
- Next business day processing
- Registered agent services (free for one year)
- Online status tracking
- Free business tax consultation
- Online document access
- Lifetime customer support
You can get all of these services from Incfile for free; just pay the state fees. This simple and inexpensive setup is why so many entrepreneurs turn to Incfile for LLC formation services.
There are three LLC packages for you to choose from:
- Silver — $0 + state fee
- Gold — $149 + state fee
- Platinum — $299 + state fee
If you’re on a tight budget and just want the basic services from the bullet list above, you can get that Silver package without paying a dime to Incfile. As previously mentioned, this even comes with a free year of registered agent services.
With that said, the Silver package doesn’t come with an employer identification/tax ID (EIN). This is definitely something you’ll need, so it makes sense to get it directly from Incfile. You can add that to your Silver package for $70.
Alternatively, the Gold plan comes with several additional premium services. This includes an EIN, preparation and filing of IRS form 2553, an operating agreement, banking resolution, express shipping, and a business formation kit.
The Platinum package comes with added perks like business contract templates, free domain name, email service, expedited filing, and a better version of the business formation kit.
Not all of the Platinum features are really necessary, especially the free domain and email service. These are things you should be getting elsewhere.
The state fee varies depending on your location. It’s easy to see those exact figures directly on Incfile’s website when you select your state. All of the pricing is straightforward and transparent.
Incfile can also provide you with assistance for trademarks, a Certificate of Good Standing, DBA (doing business as) names, and business license research.
With more than 18,000 verified reviews directly on their website, Incfile has a 4.8/5-star rating.
What are customers saying about Incfile as it pertains to the LLC services?
The vast majority of reviews boast about how fast and easy the service is. Customers love the simple dashboard, low prices, and clear instructions. One verified buyer called Incfile “the most efficient business filing service they’ve ever found.”
Entrepreneurs who have never been through the LLC filing process before find the service extremely helpful. If they had questions or needed assistance, the customer support team at Incfile was there with a resolution.
Like most business services, there will always be some people who had negative experiences. A handful of reviews complain about a lack of communication or trouble reaching a support agent. But these seem to be anomalies buried amongst a sea of great reviews.
The fact that you can use Incfile to register your LLC for free is probably the best value you’ll find on the web. With that said, I’d recommend the Gold package, as it truly comes with everything you’ll need to form your LLC, including an EIN.
Incfile Incorporation Services
Incfile also has exceptional incorporation services. You can use them to form a C-Corporation, S-Corporation, or a nonprofit corporation.
Like the LLC services, the entry-level Silver package from Incfile is 100% free for the incorporation services as well. So regardless of the entity type you need to form, all you’ll have to pay is the state fee (prices vary by state).
The free plan comes with preparation and filing for the articles of incorporation, initial annual report, and IRS form 2553. You’ll also benefit from unlimited name availability search, statement and resignation of the incorporator, online status tracking, online access to incorporation documents, and next business day processing.
You’ll also get registered agent services free for the first year.
With that said, the free plan does lack some of the services you’ll need to officially incorporate. I’m referring to things like:
- Employer identification number (EIN) — $70
- Corporate bylaws — $30
- Corporate organizational meeting minutes — $25
- Banking resolution — $35
Rather than buying these individually, they come included with the Gold package (starting at $149).
The Gold package also comes with a business formation kit and express shipping. So it’s really a great value. Incfile has a Platinum package (starting at $299). This comes with expedited filing, faster shipping, a free domain, email service, and the Platinum business formation kit.
Unless you want the enhanced kit and FedEx shipping, the Gold package will be your best value. Ignore the free domain and email services. I wouldn’t get either of those from a business formation service.
I also like Incfile’s incorporation services because they have so much information about each entity type. Even if you’ve never formed a C-corp, S-corp, or nonprofit, you can basically learn everything you need directly from Incfile’s website—for free.
Furthermore, there’s a dedicated learning center with research tools, guides, and seemingly endless resources for incorporations.
What are customers saying about Incfile’s incorporation services?
These aren’t nearly as popular as the LLC services. So you need to do some digging around to see. Incfile’s website lacks a lot of these reviews, so we browsed through some third-party review sites like Trustpilot to see what real customers were saying.
The rating is fairly average. There are actually some recent reviews dragging the score down a bit, and a few of those are related to the incorporation services. Some of the complaints were related to how long it took to incorporate. Others pointed to customer service issues.
However, so many of these recent reviews aren’t verified. So I question the legitimacy of them.
Despite the handful of less-than-stellar reviews for Incfile’s incorporation services, we can still recommend them with confidence.
If you’re launching a C-Corp, S-Corp, or nonprofit, Incfile is a cost-effective alternative to hiring a traditional lawyer to handle this for you.
Incfile Registered Agent Services
Incfile’s registered agent services are available in all 50 states. They’ll help you manage crucial legal documents and prevent errors with your filings.
Every LLC or corporation is required to have a registered agent. So if you’re using Incfile’s incorporation services, it makes sense to use their registered agents as well. However, existing businesses can also take advantage of registered agent services from Incfile. They make it easy for you to change registered agents, regardless of the state you’re operating in.
Here’s a quick overview of the services and benefits you’ll get from an Incfile registered agent:
- Always available during business hours
- Available to receive state and IRS mail correspondence
- Available to receive documents and legal proceedings on behalf of your LLC or corporation
- Email and SMS alerts whenever documents are received
- Automatic mail forwarding for legal correspondence, documents, and other information
My favorite part of Incfile’s registered agent service is the online dashboard.
You can manage everything you need online, at a glance, from anywhere with Internet access.
If you’re using Incfile to form an LLC, S-Corp, C-Corp, or nonprofit, the registered agent services are free for the first year. Then the rate renews at the regular price of $119 per year thereafter.
Customers rave about Incfile’s registered agent services. After reading through testimonials and reviews on their website and third-party platforms, it seems like the registered agent service is why business owners trust Incfile for the long haul.
While it’s obviously great to have the free registered agent initially, so many customers mention how they have been using Incfile for years—long after the complimentary year has expired. So when businesses have the chance to look elsewhere after that first year, they continue to stick with Incfile, which is extremely encouraging.
From helping you avoid missed deadlines, fines, and non-compliance issues to managing paperwork and responding quickly in the event of a lawsuit, Incfile’s registered agent services are top-notch.
This gives you the opportunity to focus on your business while they handle the little things. If something important arises, you’ll be notified by SMS or email immediately.
Overall Pricing and Value
We’ve mentioned Incfile’s prices throughout this guide. But I want to take a moment to provide you with a more in-depth explanation of the packages and rates.
Whether you’re forming an LLC or corporation, these are the plans you can choose from:
Silver — $0 + state fee
- Prepare and file articles of organization
- Unlimited name availability search
- Free registered agent (for first year)
- Statement and resignation of organizer
- Statement and resignation of the incorporator**
- Online status tracking
- Business tax consultancy
- Online document access
- Lifetime company alerts
- Standard state filing
- Electronic document delivery
Gold — $149 + state fee
- All Silver services
- EIN/tax ID
- Operating agreement
- IRS form 2553
- Operating agreement
- Banking resolution
- Gold business formation kit
- Express shipping
- Corporate bylaws**
- Corporation organizational meeting minutes**
Platinum — $299 + state fee
- All Gold services
- Business contract templates
- Free domain name
- Free email service
- Platinum business formation kit
- Expedited filing
**Services specific to corporations
Overall, the Gold package provides the best value. Things like an EIN and more are required to form an LLC or incorporation. That doesn’t come standard with the Silver plan.
I can see why some people would be enticed by the “free” aspect of the Silver package. But the $149 plus state fees for the Gold plan is such a small price to pay for starting a business.
Most people won’t need the Platinum package. The free domain and email service shouldn’t sway you at all. Those are services you should be getting directly from a web hosting provider, not a business formation service. Although I will say that the Platinum business formation kit and expedited filing are nice-to-haves.
User Experience
Using Incfile is seamless. Getting started is as simple as navigating to the website, choosing your entity type (LLC, C-corp, S-corp, or nonprofit), and selecting your state.
Incfile will automatically generate your state fees based on the entity you want to form.
As you can see from the example above, the state fee for an LLC in Washington is $200. So the pricing is transparent.
Once you sign up and choose your plan, everything is straightforward from there. You’ll enter details about your business and manage it all from Incfile’s intuitive dashboard.
You can track the status of the formation process online. Once you’re officially registered, you can use the dashboard to access crucial documents. Your registered agent will notify you via SMS or email if something requires your attention (like an urgent piece of legal mail).
Overall, the interface is really clean, and it’s easy for anyone to navigate and figure out.
Customer Support
Every Incfile customer (even people on the free Silver plan) get unlimited phone and email support. Whether you need help finding a document or just have a general inquiry, the Incfile team will be there to provide assistance.
Phone support is available from Monday to Friday, 9 am – 6 pm CST.
As previously mentioned, Incfile has outstanding registered agent services as well. Due to the human touch associated with this service, I think it’s worth mentioning in the customer support category.
Your registered agent can receive documentation on your behalf, ensure you stay compliant, forward your mail, and alert you if something comes up.
Most of the online reviews from existing customers say great things about Incfile’s support. With that said, there are a handful of people who weren’t exactly satisfied. I saw a few recent reviews from people who said they had trouble reaching an agent. But those seemed to be outliers compared to the bulk of reviews.
Final Verdict
If you need to form an LLC, C-Corp, S-Corp, or nonprofit corporation, Incfile should definitely be taken into consideration.
They provide a cost-efficient alternative to hiring a lawyer. Some of their services are completely free; you just have to pay the state fees.
When you sign up for one of Incfile’s business formation plans, you’ll also get registered agent services free for one year. It’s tough to pass up on a value like that.
Source: quicksprout
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