Washington LLC vs Alaska LLC (2026)
Written for owners based in Washington.
Verdict: for most owners, form where the business is based
Alaska's first year runs $300 against Washington's $270, and its $100 Biennial Report annualizes to $50, below the $70 Washington collects every year. That ordering breaks once you add Alaska's separate statewide business licence at $50 a year, which the $250 formation fee does not cover, and a biennial report postmarked after February 1 costs $137.50 rather than $100. Washington charges $200 online or $180 by mail, because the $20 online processing fee is not levied on paper filings. Registering an Alaska company into Washington is a further $200.
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Compare Washington LLC vs Alaska 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: October 5, 2026
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| Factor | Washington | Alaska |
|---|---|---|
| Filing Fee | $180 by mail, $200 online ($20 online surcharge) | $250 |
| Processing Time | Within 15 business days (paper) | Instant online; 10 to 15 business days by mail |
| Annual Report Fee | $70 | $100 (biennial) |
| Annual Report Due | Last day of anniversary month | January 2 (biennial) |
| State Income Tax | None through 2027; 9.90% above $1M from 2028 | No |
| Anonymous LLC | No | No |
| Publication Requirement | No | No |
| Foreign LLC Cost (if forming out-of-state) | N/A, you're in your home state | $180 + registered agent ~$150/yr |
Full fee breakdown for either state: Washington LLC cost and Alaska LLC cost. Owner privacy options for either state: Washington anonymous LLC guide and Alaska anonymous LLC guide.
Business Climate: Washington vs Alaska
| Factor | Washington | Alaska |
|---|---|---|
| 5-year business survival rate | 42.2% (#51 of 51) | 50.8% (#28 of 51) |
| Business application growth (2026 YTD (Jan to Jul) vs 2025 YTD (same months)) | -25.5% YoY (#15 of 51 by volume) | +34.8% YoY (#48 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: Washington vs Alaska
Washington
Alaska
A figure shown as "from" is the least the state can charge, not a price. Tennessee's report is $300 for up to six members and $50 for each member above six, its franchise tax is the greater of $100 or 0.25% of Tennessee net worth, Wyoming's report is the greater of $60 or $.0002 per dollar of in-state assets, Kentucky's entity tax is $175 up to $3 million of gross receipts and graduated above it, and New York's annual filing fee is graduated on New York source gross income. A total that contains one of those is shown as "from" for the same reason. 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 the state publishes a rate for it, and any one-time registration charge a state requires before the LLC may trade. Two exclusions follow from that wording. Arizona and Nebraska require publication and publish no rate, so no newspaper cost is carried for either and their totals are not the whole cost. Alaska's $50 annual state business licence is a separate charge from the Secretary of State fees and is not carried here either. 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. 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
Washington charges $200 to form an LLC, while Alaska charges $250. Washington is $50 cheaper upfront. The cost that usually gets overlooked: if you form in Alaska but operate in Washington, you must also register as a foreign LLC in Washington (a $180 minimum filing) and maintain a registered agent in Alaska (typically around $150 per year). That puts the realistic first-year cost of the Alaska route at roughly $580, versus $200 for simply forming in Washington. Both states publish a standard turnaround, Washington (within 15 business days, paper) and Alaska (instant online; 10 to 15 business days by mail), though a published figure is a norm, not a guarantee.
Taxes: Washington vs Alaska
Neither Washington nor Alaska levies a personal income tax through 2027, so there's no income-tax advantage to forming in either state; from 2028 Washington taxes individuals at 9.90% on income above a $1,000,000 standard deduction. Washington imposes the Business & Occupation (B&O) tax on gross receipts.
Privacy & Asset Protection
Neither Washington nor Alaska offers anonymous LLC formation: both states require owner or manager information on public filings. The initial and biennial reports list all members/managers with their ownership percentages (public on the state database). 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
Washington LLCs file an annual report ($70, due in the anniversary month), and Alaska LLCs file a biennial report ($100, due January 2, every two years). If you form in Alaska while operating in Washington, you maintain filings in both states, Alaska's report plus Washington's equivalent for your foreign registration, and pay an Alaska registered agent roughly $150 per year. Counting report fees, the agent and any entity-level tax, that brings the Alaska route to roughly $320 a year, versus about $70 to keep a domestic Washington LLC in good standing. The tax inside those totals: Washington imposes the Business & Occupation (B&O) tax on gross receipts.
When Alaska Actually Makes Sense
Forming in Alaska makes sense in a few specific situations: your business genuinely operates in Alaska, with a real office, employees, or property there, or you're relocating to Alaska in the near future. For a typical small business based in Washington, none of these usually apply. Registering an Alaska LLC to do business back home means at least $180 in Washington foreign-registration fees, on top of Alaska's $250 formation fee, while Washington's own annual report runs $70 a year and is due in the anniversary month. When in doubt, form where you actually do business.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Sources
Each entry below is a document recorded in our verified 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.
- sos.wa.gov/corporations-charities/business-entities/limited-liability-company-llc-professional-llc-pllc-filing-resource-pageWashington Secretary of State: business entity filings
- sos.wa.gov/corporations-charities/frequently-asked-questions-faqs/fee-scheduleexpedited-serviceWashington LLC filing fees
- commerce.alaska.gov/web/cbpl/Corporations.aspxAlaska Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing: business entity filings
- commerce.alaska.gov/web/cbpl/Corporations/CorpFormsFees/FormsbyEntity.aspxAlaska LLC filing fees
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.