Compare California LLCs Against Every Other State

What California costs today

Forming an LLC in California costs $70 to file online. Counting that filing fee plus one year of the state's recurring charges, meaning the annualized report and any minimum entity-level tax, a first year comes to $880. After year one California has $810 a year in recurring state charges, annualized. See what California actually requires each year, including what the filing is called and when it is first due.

Measured on first-year cost alone, 48 of these 49 states are cheaper than California, 1 cost more. Cost is only one input. Forming outside the state where you actually operate usually means registering as a foreign LLC at home as well, so you pay both states. Each comparison below works through that trade for one specific pair.

All 49 comparisons, cheapest first

The difference column is that state's first-year minimum minus California's $880.

Each first-year figure is that state's online filing fee plus one year of its recurring charges: the report annualized over its cycle, any minimum entity-level tax, and any publication cost the state publishes. It is not a prediction of your own first year. Seven states file only every second year, and several do not require a first report until year two, so check the state's own deadline. Registered agent service is excluded throughout, being a commercial charge rather than a state one. A state showing no recurring cost may still owe an entity-level tax above that state's threshold. Arizona, Nebraska and New York additionally require newspaper publication whose full cost no state publishes.

More California guides

• All California LLC guides
• What an LLC really costs in California
• Compare from a different home state