South Carolina Business Entity Search
By Edmond Hui · Last updated October 5, 2026
The short answer. The South Carolina Secretary of State keeps South Carolina's register of business entities. The official search is the state's “Business Name Search” page, on businessfilings.sc.gov. We have not confirmed whether the state charges to search, so check the search page itself.
South Carolina Business Entity Search at a Glance
| Register kept by | The South Carolina Secretary of State |
| Official search | Business Name Search |
| Cost to search | Not confirmed |
| Search by | Entity name |
| Filed documents online | Not confirmed |
| Copy fee | See Documents |
| Certifying a copy | See Documents |
| Name reservation | Optional |
| Name reservation fee | $25.00 |
Read from the government sources listed at the foot of this page, last checked October 5, 2026. See the sources.
How to Search South Carolina's Register
The official search is the state's “Business Name Search” page, on businessfilings.sc.gov. We have not confirmed whether the state charges to search, so check the search page itself. Open the official search.
On the main search page you can search by:
- Entity name
The state also runs separate search pages:
- Registered Agent Search, to search by registered agent or registered office.
What a Search Result Shows
A South Carolina result includes the items below, according to the state's own pages or a result page we read. It may show more.
- Registered agent or registered office
What Each South Carolina Status Means
The status is the label the register puts on each entity. Where the state defines a label, the meaning below restates that definition, with a link to the state page it comes from. Where it does not, we do not guess from the word, because the same word can mean different things in different states.
We have not confirmed which status labels South Carolina's register uses; check the search page for an entity's status and what it means.
If the search shows that your own LLC was dissolved, see how to reinstate an LLC in South Carolina.
A search result is not a certificate of good standing. If a bank or another state asks for one, see how to get a South Carolina certificate of good standing.
Viewing and Ordering Documents
We have not confirmed whether filed documents can be viewed online; check the search page.
Copies ordered online cost $3.00 for the first page of each document and $0.50 for each additional page. Certifying a copy adds $2.00 for each certificate under the LLC Act. Order copies from the state.
Is the Name Available?
The state tells you to use this same search to check whether a name is already in use.
The state's naming standard, in its own words: “distinguishable upon the records of the Secretary of State.”
Reserving a name is optional. A name reservation costs $25.00.
Our free LLC name checker looks up domain and social media handle availability for a name. It does not search South Carolina's register, so check the state's search as well.
Worth Knowing in South Carolina
The Secretary of State does not keep the names of a company's officers or directors; the Business Entities page refers those questions to the Department of Revenue.
Ready to form? See what goes on the South Carolina articles of organization.
Frequently Asked Questions
This guide is general information, not legal or tax advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. It reports what each state's business entity filing office publishes about searching its register, with the sources this page cites. It cannot tell you whether a particular business is active, authorized or reliable: read the state's own record for that, and search tools, status labels and fees change between our reviews. Confirm anything you rely on with the filing office named on this page before you act on it.
Sources
Each entry below is a document recorded in our verified South Carolina sources, and each entry says what the document is. Some statutory text is read from an accurate mirror rather than from the state's own host, and those say so. Where we hold the citation but no stable public link, the citation is printed on its own rather than pointed at a guessed address.
- sos.sc.gov/online-filings/business-entitiesBusiness Entities
- businessfilings.sc.gov/businessfilingBusiness Entities Online
- businessfilings.sc.gov/BusinessFiling/Entity/SearchBusiness Name Search
- businessfilings.sc.gov/BusinessFiling/Entity/AgentSearchRegistered Agent Search
- sos.sc.gov/online-filings/business-entities/file-and-search-onlineFile and Search Online
- sos.sc.gov/online-filings/business-entities/document-request-onlineDocument Request Online
- scstatehouse.gov/code/t33c044.phpS.C. Code Title 33 Chapter 44 (Uniform Limited Liability Company Act of 1996)
- sos.sc.gov/faqs-about-business-entitiesFAQs About Business Entities
- Name standard: S.C. Code 33-44-105(b)
Edmond Hui · Founder, MyStateLLC
Edmond Hui is a software engineer and serial entrepreneur based in New York who has founded multiple online businesses across e-commerce, media, and information publishing. Before transitioning into tech, he spent years as a commercial real estate professional closing deals totaling over 100,000 square feet, giving him firsthand experience with business formation and entity structuring. He built MyStateLLC to provide the free, state-specific LLC guidance he wished existed when forming his own companies.