New Hampshire LLC vs Delaware LLC (2026)
Compare New Hampshire LLC vs Delaware LLC on filing fees, taxes, privacy laws, and annual costs. Find out which state is actually better for your business.
By Edmond Hui · Last updated: August 13, 2026
Verdict: New Hampshire wins for most businesses
For most New Hampshire-based businesses, forming locally in New Hampshire is the smarter choice. You avoid paying fees in two states and managing compliance in both. Delaware only makes sense if your business genuinely operates there or your investors require a Delaware entity, and even then the total costs deserve a hard look.
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| Factor | New Hampshire | Delaware |
|---|---|---|
| Filing Fee | $100 | $110 |
| Processing Time | Not published by the state | Not published by the state |
| Annual Report Fee | $100 | None ($400/yr entity tax instead) |
| Annual Report Due | April 1 | None required |
| State Income Tax | No | Yes |
| Anonymous LLC | No | Yes |
| Publication Requirement | No | No |
| Foreign LLC Cost (if forming out-of-state) | N/A, you're in your home state | $100 + registered agent ~$150/yr |
Full fee breakdown for either state: New Hampshire LLC cost and Delaware LLC cost.
Business Climate: New Hampshire vs Delaware
| Factor | New Hampshire | Delaware |
|---|---|---|
| 5-year business survival rate | 47.7% (#40 of 51) | 48.1% (#37 of 51) |
| Business application growth (2026 YTD (Jan to Jul) vs 2025 YTD (same months)) | +26.1% YoY (#42 of 51 by volume) | +2.5% YoY (#33 of 51 by volume) |
Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Business Employment Dynamics · U.S. Census Bureau, Business Formation Statistics (BFS)
Compare LLC Costs: New Hampshire vs Delaware
New Hampshire
Delaware
Costs include every mandatory state charge: the filing fee, the report fee (annualised where a state files biennially), any state entity-level tax shown in its own row above, a one-time publication cost where a state requires publication, and any one-time registration charge a state requires before the LLC may trade. Annualising makes the 1, 3 and 5 year rows a cost of ownership rather than a payment schedule: a biennial state charges its whole report fee in the years it falls due and nothing in between. Entity-level taxes that only apply after a corporate election, or above an owner or income threshold, are excluded and flagged on the state's own cost page. New York's publication cost is carried at a $250 floor, roughly $200 of newspaper cost in a low-cost county plus the $50 Certificate of Publication fee. No county-clerk-designated New York City newspaper publishes a rate card, so the four-figure NYC estimates in wide circulation cannot be traced to a primary source and are not asserted here; budget for materially more than the floor if you file in a NYC county. Montana's annual report is free when filed by April 15 and $35 after, a waiver the Secretary of State applies at its discretion. Every fee was verified against the state's own fee schedule, statute, or revenue authority on 29 July 2026. Excludes registered agent and legal fees. For informational purposes only, not legal or tax advice.
Filing Fees & Formation Costs
New Hampshire charges $100 to form an LLC, while Delaware charges $110. New Hampshire is $10 cheaper upfront. The cost that usually gets overlooked: if you form in Delaware but operate in New Hampshire, you must also register as a foreign LLC in New Hampshire (a $100 filing) and maintain a registered agent in Delaware (typically around $150 per year). That puts the realistic first-year cost of the Delaware route at roughly $360, versus $100 for simply forming in New Hampshire. Speed isn't a basis for choosing between them: neither New Hampshire nor Delaware publishes a standard processing time, so any figure comparing the two is guesswork.
Taxes: New Hampshire vs Delaware
New Hampshire has no personal income tax, while Delaware taxes individual income. Since pass-through LLC profits are taxed where you live and operate, a New Hampshire-based owner keeps New Hampshire's no-income-tax benefit either way. Forming in Delaware adds no tax advantage. Business Profits Tax of 7.5% applies to LLCs with gross business income over $109,000 (threshold for periods beginning on/after 1/1/2025), and Business Enterprise Tax of 0.55% applies over $298,000 of gross receipts or enterprise value tax base. Both beyond the $100 annual report fee. Delaware LLCs owe a flat $400 annual LLC tax (no report required).
Privacy & Asset Protection
Delaware allows anonymous LLC formation. Member and manager names don't appear on routine public filings. Delaware's Certificate of Formation requires no member or manager names, and LLCs file no annual report, so ownership never appears on a public filing. New Hampshire doesn't offer that same privacy. The Certificate of Formation (RSA 304-C:31) doesn't require member/manager names, but the annual report (RSA 304-C:194) must set forth the names and business addresses of the LLC's managers or, if there are no managers, at least one member, so ownership/management can't stay off all routine public filings. Both states provide charging-order protection for LLC members, and for most small businesses the practical difference in asset protection between the two is minimal. One important caveat: if you register your Delaware LLC as a foreign LLC in New Hampshire, that New Hampshire registration is itself a public record, which can undercut much of the privacy benefit for a business that operates in New Hampshire.
Annual Maintenance Costs
New Hampshire LLCs file an annual report ($100, due April 1), and Delaware LLCs file no annual report at all. If you form in Delaware while operating in New Hampshire, you maintain filings in both states, Delaware asks for no report, but New Hampshire still wants its equivalent for your foreign registration, and pay a Delaware registered agent roughly $150 per year. Counting report fees, the agent and any entity-level tax, that brings the Delaware route to roughly $650 a year, versus about $100 to keep a domestic New Hampshire LLC in good standing. The taxes inside those totals: Business Profits Tax of 7.5% applies to LLCs with gross business income over $109,000 (threshold for periods beginning on/after 1/1/2025), and Business Enterprise Tax of 0.55% applies over $298,000 of gross receipts or enterprise value tax base. Both beyond the $100 annual report fee. Delaware LLCs owe a flat $400 annual LLC tax (no report required).
When Delaware Actually Makes Sense
Forming in Delaware makes sense in a few specific situations: you need anonymous ownership. New Hampshire puts owner or manager information on public filings and Delaware doesn't (usually via a holding company, since operating in New Hampshire still requires a public foreign registration there), you're raising venture capital or institutional investment. Many investors specifically prefer or require Delaware entities, your business genuinely operates in Delaware, with a real office, employees, or property there, or you're relocating to Delaware in the near future and accept taking on Delaware's personal income tax, which New Hampshire doesn't levy. For a typical small business based in New Hampshire, none of these usually apply. Registering a Delaware LLC to do business back home means $100 in New Hampshire foreign-registration fees, on top of Delaware's $110 formation fee, while New Hampshire's own annual report runs $100 a year and is due April 1. When in doubt, form where you actually do business.
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