Comparison · Ranking
Cheapest states to form an LLC (2026): 3-year state fee ranking
This ranks Secretary of State / revenue dollars only — Articles (or Certificate of Formation) plus the hub’s typical recurring SOS/franchise/license fees across a ~3-year window. It does not include registered-agent shop prices, newspaper publication, or “where should I incorporate” tax advice.
Cheap charter ≠ cheap operation. If customers, employees, or inventory sit in another state,
you may still foreign-qualify and pay that state’s fees/taxes. A low Wyoming or New Mexico total does not erase nexus elsewhere.
Top 10 by ~3-year state fees
- Montana — $35 over ~3 years (formation $35; little/no SOS recurring in the model).
- Arizona — $50 over ~3 years (formation $50; little/no SOS recurring in the model).
- Mississippi — $50 over ~3 years (formation $50; little/no SOS recurring in the model).
- Missouri — $50 over ~3 years (formation $50; little/no SOS recurring in the model).
- New Mexico — $50 over ~3 years (formation $50; little/no SOS recurring in the model).
- Hawaii — $96 over ~3 years (formation $50; typical recurring $15/cycle).
- Ohio — $99 over ~3 years (formation $99; little/no SOS recurring in the model).
- Idaho — $100 over ~3 years (formation $100; little/no SOS recurring in the model).
- Iowa — $110 over ~3 years (formation $50; typical recurring $30/cycle).
- South Carolina — $110 over ~3 years (formation $110; little/no SOS recurring in the model).
Full ranking (50 states + DC)
“Typical annual / recurring” is the hub’s modeled SOS or revenue recurring amount per cycle (annual report, license tax floor, franchise/LLC tax floor, etc.). Some hubs pack multi-line year-1 costs into the 3-year total (see Nevada, Alabama) — open the state hub for the breakdown.
| # | State | Formation | Typical recurring | ~3-year state total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Montana Caveat: On-time annual report waiver is current on sosmt.gov/business/fees/ as of 2026-09-06; if the SOS ends the waiver, on-time fee historically w |
$35 | $0 | $35 |
| 2 | Arizona Caveat: County newspaper publication when required is not a fixed statewide fee |
$50 | $0 | $50 |
| 3 | Mississippi | $50 | $0 | $50 |
| 4 | Missouri | $50 | $0 | $50 |
| 5 | New Mexico | $50 | $0 | $50 |
| 6 | Hawaii | $50 | $15 | $96 |
| 7 | Ohio Caveat: Exact current expedite tier prices if not paid at formation (confirm on Ohio Business Central at filing). |
$99 | $0 | $99 |
| 8 | Idaho Caveat: Whether SOSBiz card convenience fee applies to $100 formation (some guides cite ~$1–$3). |
$100 | $0 | $100 |
| 9 | Iowa | $50 | $30 | $110 |
| 10 | South Carolina | $110 | $0 | $110 |
| 11 | Utah Caveat: PDF title history includes July 2024 update; amounts matched current public fee PDF at research time — re-check if Division posts a newer FY |
$59 | $18 | $113 |
| 12 | Colorado | $50 | $25 | $125 |
| 13 | Michigan Caveat: Exact current expedite fee schedule line items on MiBRP checkout (confirm at filing). |
$50 | $25 | $125 |
| 14 | Indiana Caveat: Exact credit/debit card processing percentage at INBiz checkout (portal FeeCalculator). |
$95 | $32 | $127 |
| 15 | Pennsylvania | $125 | $7 | $146 |
| 16 | Nebraska Caveat: Exact Nebraska.gov portal convenience fee amount if any. |
$100 | $25 | $150 |
| 17 | Minnesota Caveat: sos.state.mn.us fee-schedule HTML page is behind bot protection; fees corroborated via portal listing and published fee-schedule PDF. |
$155 | $0 | $155 |
| 18 | Oklahoma Caveat: Westlaw Oklahoma § 2055 fee list was cited in search results; $100 articles fee corroborated on official Form FM0074. |
$100 | $25 | $175 |
| 19 | Louisiana | $100 | $30 | $190 |
| 20 | West Virginia Caveat: Exact current registered-agent street-address requirements vs SOS-as-agent edge cases. |
$100 | $25 | $205 |
| 21 | Wisconsin | $130 | $25 | $205 |
| 22 | New York Caveat: County-designated newspaper rates vary; not a fixed statewide fee — excluded from threeYearStateSubtotal |
$200 | $9 | $209 |
| 23 | Alabama Caveat: Exact BPT for a given LLC depends on net worth apportionment; baseline assumes exemption at ≤$100 calculated tax. |
$200 | $0 | $228 |
| 24 | Virginia | $100 | $50 | $250 |
| 25 | Kansas Caveat: Whether ILC.pdf ($90 online) will be republished after Feb 2026 regs; used $90 consistent with statute $80 + current regulation add-ons and |
$85 | $90 | $265 |
| 26 | Georgia Caveat: Whether any separate service-charge line item still appears beyond the published $100/$110/$60 totals on some channels — use portal checkout |
$100 | $60 | $280 |
| 27 | Wyoming | $100 | $60 | $280 |
| 28 | North Dakota | $135 | $50 | $285 |
| 29 | Vermont | $155 | $45 | $290 |
| 30 | Texas | $300 | $0 | $300 |
| 31 | South Dakota | $150 | $55 | $315 |
| 32 | New Jersey Caveat: Exact card convenience-fee percentage on the formation portal at checkout. |
$100 | $75 | $325 |
| 33 | Connecticut | $120 | $80 | $360 |
| 34 | Illinois Caveat: Exact online payment-processor surcharge amount at checkout (varies by card). |
$150 | $75 | $375 |
| 35 | Washington Caveat: SOS states $180 plus an online processing fee; secondary sources commonly cite +$20 — exact online add-on should be confirmed at CCFS checko |
$180 | $70 | $390 |
| 36 | New Hampshire | $100 | $100 | $400 |
| 37 | Oregon | $100 | $100 | $400 |
| 38 | Maine | $175 | $85 | $430 |
| 39 | Arkansas Caveat: Exact online card processing surcharge on franchise portal (often ~$5) not included in subtotal. |
$45 | $150 | $495 |
| 40 | Florida | $125 | $138.75 | $541.25 |
| 41 | Alaska Caveat: Exact business-license term pricing variations by industry endorsement. |
$250 | $100 | $600 |
| 42 | Kentucky Caveat: County clerk recording fee amounts vary and were not fixed to a single statewide figure. |
$40 | $15 | $610 |
| 43 | District of Columbia Caveat: Whether a specific LLC is subject to UBF minimum in year one — fact-dependent; excluded from subtotal. |
$99 | $300 | $699 |
| 44 | North Carolina | $125 | $200 | $725 |
| 45 | Maryland | $100 | $300 | $1,000 |
| 46 | Delaware | $110 | $400 | $1,310 |
| 47 | Nevada Caveat: Commerce Tax thresholds/rates not included in threeYearStateSubtotal |
$75 | $150 | $1,475 |
| 48 | Rhode Island | $150 | $50 | $1,500 |
| 49 | Tennessee | $300 | $300 | $1,500 |
| 50 | Massachusetts Caveat: Whether any promotional electronic annual-report discount appears in rare older secondary sources — official Mass.gov still states $500. |
$500 | $500 | $2,000 |
| 51 | California Caveat: Tiered LLC fee ($900–$11,790) excluded from threeYearStateSubtotal; depends on California total income |
$70 | $800 | $2,510 |
Most expensive in this model
- California — $2,510 (formation $70, typical recurring $800).
- Massachusetts — $2,000 (formation $500, typical recurring $500).
- Tennessee — $1,500 (formation $300, typical recurring $300).
- Rhode Island — $1,500 (formation $150, typical recurring $50).
- Nevada — $1,475 (formation $75, typical recurring $150).
California and Massachusetts are driven by annual LLC / excise tax floors; Delaware by the flat $400/yr alternative-entity tax; Nevada and Rhode Island by stacked SOS + license / minimum tax lines. See each hub.
How the math works
- Includes: domestic LLC formation fee + typical SOS/revenue recurring fees for ~3 years, as published on each state hub.
- Excludes: professional RA, publication, expedites, card convenience fees (unless fixed on schedule), foreign qualification, income/sales tax, and variable gross-receipts tiers above a stated floor.
- Wyoming re-check (tonight): Articles still $100; license tax still greater of $60 or $0.0002 of WY-located assets; online Articles card fee still 2.4% — no fee drift vs Sep 4 hub.
- Montana note: on-time annual report is currently WAIVED on the SOS fee page (late = $35). If the waiver ends, the 3-year total rises.
Partner link — we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Prices above are researched from public pages, not supplied by the provider. How this site makes money.
Sources
- Montana — primary hub source · state hub
- Arizona — primary hub source · state hub
- Mississippi — primary hub source · state hub
- Missouri — primary hub source · state hub
- New Mexico — primary hub source · state hub
- Hawaii — primary hub source · state hub
- Ohio — primary hub source · state hub
- Idaho — primary hub source · state hub
- Iowa — primary hub source · state hub
- South Carolina — primary hub source · state hub
- Utah — primary hub source · state hub
- Colorado — primary hub source · state hub
- Michigan — primary hub source · state hub
- Indiana — primary hub source · state hub
- Pennsylvania — primary hub source · state hub
- Wyoming — primary hub source · state hub
- Wyoming SOS Business Division Filing Fee Schedule (eff. July 1, 2026) — re-verified tonight; no drift
- Montana SOS business fees — Articles $35; on-time annual report waived (re-verified 2026-09-06)
- Full per-state source lists live on each state hub.