Washington LLC vs Idaho LLC (2026)
Written for owners based in Washington.
Verdict: for most owners, form where the business is based
Idaho charges $100 to organize and nothing at all for its annual report, so five years costs $100 against $550 in Washington. A free filing is still a filing: Idaho can begin administrative dissolution once the anniversary-month deadline passes, and no invoice arrives to prompt you. Mailing the certificate rather than e-filing adds a $20 manual data entry surcharge, taking it to $120, which is the mirror image of Washington, where paper is the $180 channel and online the $200 one. Washington's $70 report at least buys a reminder. Registering an Idaho LLC here costs $200.
Based in Idaho? Read Idaho LLC vs Washington LLC →
Compare Washington LLC vs Idaho 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 | Idaho |
|---|---|---|
| Filing Fee | $180 by mail, $200 online ($20 online surcharge) | $100 |
| Processing Time | Within 15 business days (paper) | Live queue, not fixed |
| Annual Report Fee | $70 | $0 |
| Annual Report Due | Last day of anniversary month | Anniversary month |
| State Income Tax | None through 2027; 9.90% above $1M from 2028 | Yes |
| 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 Idaho LLC cost. Owner privacy options for either state: Washington anonymous LLC guide and Idaho anonymous LLC guide.
Business Climate: Washington vs Idaho
| Factor | Washington | Idaho |
|---|---|---|
| 5-year business survival rate | 42.2% (#51 of 51) | 45.6% (#48 of 51) |
| Business application growth (2026 YTD (Jan to Jul) vs 2025 YTD (same months)) | -25.5% YoY (#15 of 51 by volume) | +15.4% YoY (#39 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 Idaho
Washington
Idaho
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 Idaho charges $100. Idaho is $100 cheaper upfront. The cost that usually gets overlooked: if you form in Idaho but operate in Washington, you must also register as a foreign LLC in Washington (a $180 minimum filing) and maintain a registered agent in Idaho (typically around $150 per year). That puts the realistic first-year cost of the Idaho route at roughly $430, versus $200 for simply forming in Washington. Only one side of this comparison is knowable: Washington publishes a standard turnaround (within 15 business days, paper), while Idaho posts a rolling queue of the dates it's currently working through rather than a turnaround, so the two can't be ranked against each other on speed.
Taxes: Washington vs Idaho
Washington has no personal income tax through 2027 (from 2028 it taxes individuals at 9.90% on income above a $1,000,000 standard deduction), while Idaho taxes individual income. Since pass-through LLC profits are taxed where you live and operate, a Washington-based owner gets the same Washington income-tax treatment either way. Forming in Idaho adds no tax advantage. Idaho levies a personal income tax (flat 5.695%). Washington imposes the Business & Occupation (B&O) tax on gross receipts.
Privacy & Asset Protection
Neither Washington nor Idaho offers anonymous LLC formation: both states require owner or manager information on public filings. Idaho's annual report requires at least one member or manager (a 'governor'), and filings are public. 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 Idaho LLCs file a free annual report (due in the anniversary month). If you form in Idaho while operating in Washington, you maintain filings in both states, Idaho's report plus Washington's equivalent for your foreign registration, and pay an Idaho registered agent roughly $150 per year. Counting report fees, the agent and any entity-level tax, that brings the Idaho route to roughly $220 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 Idaho Actually Makes Sense
Forming in Idaho makes sense in a few specific situations: your business genuinely operates in Idaho, with a real office, employees, or property there, or you're relocating to Idaho in the near future and accept taking on Idaho's personal income tax, which Washington doesn't levy through 2027 (from 2028 it taxes individuals at 9.90% on income above a $1,000,000 standard deduction). For a typical small business based in Washington, none of these usually apply. Registering an Idaho LLC to do business back home means at least $180 in Washington foreign-registration fees, on top of Idaho's $100 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
- sosbiz.idaho.govIdaho Secretary of State: business entity filings
- legislature.idaho.gov/statutesrules/idstat/title30/t30ch21/sect30-21-214/Idaho 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.