Washington LLC vs Oregon LLC (2026)
Written for owners based in Washington.
Verdict: for most owners, form where the business is based
Oregon is the neighbour and the near mirror: $100 to form against $200, and $100 on every anniversary against $70. Year one is $200 against $270, and from year two Oregon costs $30 more annually. Both states tax activity rather than profit. Oregon's Corporate Activity Tax requires registration at $750,000 of Oregon commercial activity and charges $250 plus 0.57% above $1 million, while Washington's B&O tax reaches gross receipts from the first dollar with no deduction for labor or materials. An Oregon LLC selling into Washington pays $200 to register here.
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Compare Washington LLC vs Oregon 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 | Oregon |
|---|---|---|
| Filing Fee | $180 by mail, $200 online ($20 online surcharge) | $100 |
| Processing Time | Within 15 business days (paper) | Not published by the state |
| Annual Report Fee | $70 | $100 |
| Annual Report Due | Last day of anniversary month | Anniversary date |
| 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 Oregon LLC cost. Owner privacy options for either state: Washington anonymous LLC guide and Oregon anonymous LLC guide.
Business Climate: Washington vs Oregon
| Factor | Washington | Oregon |
|---|---|---|
| 5-year business survival rate | 42.2% (#51 of 51) | 45.8% (#47 of 51) |
| Business application growth (2026 YTD (Jan to Jul) vs 2025 YTD (same months)) | -25.5% YoY (#15 of 51 by volume) | +2.1% YoY (#31 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 Oregon
Washington
Oregon
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 Oregon charges $100. Oregon is $100 cheaper upfront. The cost that usually gets overlooked: if you form in Oregon but operate in Washington, you must also register as a foreign LLC in Washington (a $180 minimum filing) and maintain a registered agent in Oregon (typically around $150 per year). That puts the realistic first-year cost of the Oregon 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 Oregon publishes no standard processing time, so the two can't be ranked against each other on speed.
Taxes: Washington vs Oregon
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 Oregon 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 Oregon adds no tax advantage. Washington imposes the Business & Occupation (B&O) tax on gross receipts.
Privacy & Asset Protection
Neither Washington nor Oregon offers anonymous LLC formation: both states require owner or manager information on public filings. Oregon's annual report lists the names, titles, and addresses of all members or managers. 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 Oregon LLCs file an annual report ($100, due in the anniversary month). If you form in Oregon while operating in Washington, you maintain filings in both states, Oregon's report plus Washington's equivalent for your foreign registration, and pay an Oregon registered agent roughly $150 per year. Counting report fees, the agent and any entity-level tax, that brings the Oregon 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 Oregon Actually Makes Sense
Forming in Oregon makes sense in a few specific situations: your business genuinely operates in Oregon, with a real office, employees, or property there, or you're relocating to Oregon in the near future and accept taking on Oregon'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 Oregon LLC to do business back home means at least $180 in Washington foreign-registration fees, on top of Oregon'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
- sos.oregon.gov/business/pages/default.aspxOregon Secretary of State: business entity filings
- sos.oregon.gov/business/Documents/business-registry-forms/br-fee-schedule.pdfOregon 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.