Is it cheaper to form an LLC in New York than North Dakota?

No. New York costs more upfront ($200 vs $135), and if you operate in North Dakota you must also register there as a foreign LLC ($135) plus pay a New York registered agent. Realistic first-year cost is roughly $485 versus $135 for forming locally.

Can I form my North Dakota business in New York?

Yes. Any North Dakota business can form its LLC in New York. But if the business operates in North Dakota, it must also register there as a foreign LLC ($135 filing fee) and maintain a registered agent in New York, so you take on two states' fees and filings instead of one.

Does New York have better asset protection than North Dakota?

Not meaningfully. Both states provide charging-order protection for LLC members, and neither offers a decisive asset-protection edge for a typical small business. Sound insurance and clean separation of business and personal finances matter more in practice.

State Comparison

North Dakota LLC vs New York LLC (2026)

Compare North Dakota LLC vs New York 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

For most businesses, forming an LLC in North Dakota beats New York. North Dakota runs $185 in year one and $50/yr after; New York runs $479.50 and $29.50/yr. See the full breakdown below.

Verdict: North Dakota wins for most businesses

For most North Dakota-based businesses, forming locally in North Dakota is the smarter choice. You avoid paying fees in two states and managing compliance in both. New York only makes sense if your business genuinely operates there, and even then the total costs deserve a hard look.

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Factor	North Dakota	New York
Filing Fee	$135	$200
Processing Time	Not published by the state	Not published by the state
Annual Report Fee	$50	$9
Annual Report Due	November 15	Anniversary month (biennial)
State Income Tax	Yes	Yes
Anonymous LLC	No	No
Publication Requirement	No	Yes
Foreign LLC Cost (if forming out-of-state)	N/A, you're in your home state	$135 + registered agent ~$150/yr

Full fee breakdown for either state: North Dakota LLC cost and New York LLC cost.

Business Climate: North Dakota vs New York

Factor	North Dakota	New York
5-year business survival rate	54.4% (#7 of 51)	51.9% (#23 of 51)
Business application growth (2026 YTD (Jan to Jul) vs 2025 YTD (same months))	+14% YoY (#50 of 51 by volume)	+10.9% YoY (#4 of 51 by volume)

Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Business Employment Dynamics · U.S. Census Bureau, Business Formation Statistics (BFS)

See the full 50-state survival ranking.

Compare LLC Costs: North Dakota vs New York

State A

State B

North Dakota

✓ Cheaper Upfront✓ Cheaper Long-Term

Formation fee$135

Annual report fee$50

State entity taxNone

Report dueNovember 15

Processing timeNot published by the state

Late penalty$50

New York

Formation fee$200

Annual report fee$9 / 2 yrs

State entity tax$25/yr, Partnership, LLC and LLP Annual Filing Fee

Publication (one-time)From $250

Report dueAnniversary month (biennial)

Processing timeNot published by the state

Late penalty$0

Total Cost

North Dakota

New York

1 Year

$185

$479.5

3 Years

$285

$538.5

5 Years

$385

$597.5

Will you operate outside your home state?

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

North Dakota charges $135 to form an LLC, while New York charges $200. North Dakota is $65 cheaper upfront. The cost that usually gets overlooked: if you form in New York but operate in North Dakota, you must also register as a foreign LLC in North Dakota (a $135 filing) and maintain a registered agent in New York (typically around $150 per year). That puts the realistic first-year cost of the New York route at roughly $485, versus $135 for simply forming in North Dakota. Note that New York also requires newly formed LLCs to publish a newspaper notice (New York requires publication of the LLC's formation once a week for six weeks in two county-designated newspapers (LLC Law §206)), which adds to the true formation cost. Speed isn't a basis for choosing between them: neither North Dakota nor New York publishes a standard processing time, so any figure comparing the two is guesswork.

Taxes: North Dakota vs New York

Both North Dakota and New York levy a personal income tax on pass-through business income, and your LLC's profits will be taxed where you live and operate. Forming in New York doesn't change what a North Dakota-based owner pays. New York LLCs treated as partnerships/with NY-source income owe an annual filing fee of $25-$4,500 based on NY gross income.

Privacy & Asset Protection

Neither North Dakota nor New York offers anonymous LLC formation: both states require owner or manager information on public filings. The NY LLC Transparency Act (effective 2026) requires beneficial-ownership reporting to the state, and formation requires newspaper publication of the LLC's existence. Business owners who prioritize privacy typically form a holding company in a state like Wyoming or New Mexico instead. 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.

Annual Maintenance Costs

North Dakota LLCs file an annual report ($50, due November 15), and New York LLCs file a biennial report ($9, due in the anniversary month, every two years). If you form in New York while operating in North Dakota, you maintain filings in both states, New York's report plus North Dakota's equivalent for your foreign registration, and pay a New York registered agent roughly $150 per year. That brings ongoing costs of the New York route to roughly $209 per year, versus about $50 to keep a domestic North Dakota LLC in good standing. One more recurring cost to budget for: New York LLCs treated as partnerships/with NY-source income owe an annual filing fee of $25-$4,500 based on NY gross income.

When New York Actually Makes Sense

Forming in New York makes sense in a few specific situations: your business genuinely operates in New York, with a real office, employees, or property there, or you're relocating to New York in the near future. For a typical small business based in North Dakota, none of these usually apply. Registering a New York LLC to do business back home means $135 in North Dakota foreign-registration fees, on top of New York's $200 formation fee, while North Dakota's own annual report runs $50 a year and is due November 15. When in doubt, form where you actually do business.

Frequently Asked Questions

: No. New York costs more upfront ($200 vs $135), and if you operate in North Dakota you must also register there as a foreign LLC ($135) plus pay a New York registered agent. Realistic first-year cost is roughly $485 versus $135 for forming locally.
: Yes. Any North Dakota business can form its LLC in New York. But if the business operates in North Dakota, it must also register there as a foreign LLC ($135 filing fee) and maintain a registered agent in New York, so you take on two states' fees and filings instead of one.
: Not meaningfully. Both states provide charging-order protection for LLC members, and neither offers a decisive asset-protection edge for a typical small business. Sound insurance and clean separation of business and personal finances matter more in practice.
: North Dakota, for most. Forming where you operate keeps costs and compliance simple. New York is worth considering only if you actually do business there or have investor requirements that point there.
: Speed isn't a basis for choosing between them: neither North Dakota nor New York publishes a standard processing time, so any figure comparing the two is guesswork. Only 19 of the 50 states publish anything about non-expedited turnaround at all. Whichever you pick, remember that forming in New York while operating in North Dakota means you're not fully set up until the North Dakota foreign registration is also processed, so the out-of-state route is rarely the faster path end to end. If your timing is genuinely fixed, buy the state's expedite tier rather than relying on a standard turnaround.

Comparison chart of forming an LLC in North Dakota versus New York, contrasting filing fees, annual report cost and ongoing obligations across 8 factors. On balance this guide favours North Dakota. — North Dakota and New York side by side on the factors that decide where to form. Source: MyStateLLC 50-state cost dataset, verified against each Secretary of State's published fee schedule, July 2026.

More State Comparisons

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North Dakota LLC Guide →New York LLC Guide →

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