5 Top Registered Agent Services When Forming an LLC or Corporation

Are you looking for the best registered agent service, but you’re not sure where to start? With so many options available, it can be overwhelming to try to narrow them down. That’s why we did the research for you to find out what the top services are.

To keep things simple, we reviewed and ranked the top online companies that offer registered agent services + business formation.

Based on price, value, and customer service, our top five recommendations are:

1. Northwest Registered Agent
2. Incfile
3. Corpnet
4. Rocket Lawyer
5. LegalZoom

Northwest Registered Agent

(They Scored 9/10)

Northwest has top-quality offerings that are easy to leverage for entrepreneurs looking to form a business online. This company has no nonsense and no upsells, and does a much better job with customer service than any other provider.

Their services are delivered in a simple, direct manner, and there is a significant focus on their registered agent service, which is one of their top offerings.

While you can get cheaper options, Northwest does offer volume discounts that drop their price point to just $100/year per state if you require service in five or more states. Also, they actually started out as a registered agent service company over 20 years ago, and they’ve continually refined their service ever since.

For instance, they’re the only national registered agent service provider that offers local scanning of every single document they receive on your behalf ― their competitors only scan the government docs they’re legally required to.

Pros and Cons of Northwest

Pros

• Low prices
• Volume discounts
• 12 months free registered agent with any formation
• All documents locally scanned

Cons

• There are less expensive options available for standalone registered agent service

Incfile

(They Scored 8/10)

Incfile offers an impressive set of features with their business formation packages, and one of those is registered agent service. They include 12 months of registered agent for no additional fee with any of their formation packages, and they also have one of the lowest annual renewal fees available.

Incfile is definitely a top contender for anyone seeking reliable, affordable registered agent service. Plus, if you’re looking to form a company online, they have many add-on features that can really enhance your business (for example, they offer many custom documents, business contract templates, and more).

One other attractive aspect of Incfile is their customer feedback. They have thousands of reviews available online, and nearly all of them are absolutely glowing. With just a small handful of negative feedback by comparison, customer reviews are a major strength for Incfile.

Pros and Cons of Incfile

Pros

• Some of the lowest price points in the industry
• Stellar customer reviews
• 12 months free registered agent with formation purchase

Cons

• None

Corpnet

(They Scored 7/10)

Corpnet is one of our favorite service providers due to their well-balanced feature packages and fair rates. Their registered agent service is a strong offering, with a decent $149 annual price point that’s a bit higher than Incfile and Northwest, but still beats the prices offered by many of their competitors.

Corpnet is similar to Incfile in the way they receive such overwhelmingly positive customer feedback. There are hundreds of Corpnet reviews available online and about 95% of them are perfect 5-star reviews.

While Corpnet doesn’t include a full year of registered agent service in their Basic package (which only includes a largely worthless 60-day registered agent trial), their Deluxe and Complete packages do bundle in 12 months of registered agent.

Pros and Cons of Corpnet

Pros

• Great customer reviews
• Top-tier formation packages include a year of registered agent
• 100% satisfaction guarantee

Cons

• Only a 60-day trial of registered agent included in cheapest formation package
• Prices are just okay

Rocket Lawyer

(They Scored 6/10)

Rocket Lawyer’s registered agent service doesn’t really stand out in any one way, but they do everything fairly well when it comes to providing reliable service. Their $149.99 price point isn’t great, but if you subscribe to their Premium legal services membership for $39.99/month, Rocket Lawyer will provide a 25% discount on registered agent service, as well as free formation service.

Rocket Lawyer does have a few points in their favor, starting with their high level of experience. In fact, they’re one of the most experienced business services companies in the industry, as they’ve served a whopping 20 million customers since they opened for business back in 2008.

Aside from Incfile, Rocket Lawyer probably has the most impressive customer feedback in this entire guide, as they have thousands of reviews online, and the majority of them are quite positive. Their one major drawback though is that they do not include registered agent service in a bundle with LLC or corporation formation service.

Pros and Cons of Rocket Lawyer

Pros

• Strong customer feedback
• High customer volume
• Can be a good deal if you want legal services, registered agent, and formation

Cons

• Fairly high prices for registered agent on its own
• No registered agent included with standalone formation package

LegalZoom

(They Scored 6/10)

LegalZoom is another contender for the top registered agent service, especially considering they have a truly impressive volume of customers. As one of the most well-known incorporation services, LegalZoom gives you the opportunity to partner with a company that has significant experience in the legal services field.

Another aspect of their service that we appreciate is their 100% satisfaction guarantee. This guarantee is one of the best in the entire industry, as you have 60 days to request a refund for any reason, and they’ll refund your fee.

The downside, however, is that they charge much more for registered agent service than IncFile or Northwest, and LegalZoom also doesn’t include registered agent as a feature with their formation packages (even their $349 Express Gold package lacks registered agent).

Pros and Cons of LegalZoom

Pros

• Tons of experience
• Satisfaction guaranteed

Cons

• High prices
• Registered agent not included with any formation package

Which Should You Choose?

Choose Northwest: For the last 20 years, their focus has been on providing the best registered agent service available, and they continue to refine their offering. With Northwest, you’re guaranteed to get great customer service and timely responses from their team of professionals.

Choose Incfile: If you are seeking more than just a registered agent service, and also need to form an LLC or corporation, Incfile offers the best pricing and features on incorporation packages.

Choose Corpnet: They don’t really stand out in any one specific way, but they do everything well. If you’re interested in one of their advanced LLC or corporation formation packages that include a full year of registered agent, they make for an especially strong option.

Choose Rocket Lawyer: If you’re interested in their legal services subscription program, Rocket Lawyer provides discounted registered agent service and free LLC or corporation formation, making them a good option if you need all of these features.

Choose LegalZoom: If you think you will need any kind of legal advice or services, it could be a benefit to partner with a company like LegalZoom that offers these advanced features.

Frequently Asked Questions About Registered Agent Services

Q: Can’t I Just Serve as My Own Registered Agent?

A: You are allowed to serve as your own registered agent, which has its pros and cons. On the positive side, you can save some money by not paying fees to a registered agent service. On the other hand, if you serve as your own agent you’ll need to make your address a matter of public record, and you’ll also need to be present and available to receive deliveries during standard business hours every Monday through Friday.

Q: Should I Hire an Attorney or Accountant to Be My Registered Agent?

A: Some entrepreneurs like to use their accountant or lawyer as their registered agent because they’re already comfortable with them as a business partner. However, this can be a much more expensive option than hiring a registered agent service, and because most accountants and lawyers only have offices in one state, they can’t really help you if you want to expand beyond your company’s state of origin.

Q: Do I Need to Designate a Registered Agent to Form a Corporation or LLC?

A: All 50 states require you to designate a registered agent in your formation paperwork when you create your LLC or corporation. Your filing will be rejected if you leave out this crucial information.

Q: Can I Change My Registered Agent After I Form My Company?

A: You can change your registered agent at any time. The process isn’t exactly the same in every state, but in most states you’ll simply need to fill out a “Change of Registered Agent” form. There are also some states that allow you to change your registered agent in your annual report filing.