Washington LLC vs Wyoming LLC (2026)
Written for owners based in Washington.
Verdict: for most owners, form where the business is based
Wyoming's $60 Annual Report License Tax is a minimum rather than a flat fee. It is the greater of $60 or two-tenths of one mill on assets located and employed in Wyoming, so $1,000,000 of in-state assets produces $200 and $10,000,000 produces $2,000. At the floor it still beats Washington's $70, and $100 to form beats $200; neither state taxes personal income through 2027 (from 2028 Washington taxes individuals at 9.90% on income above a $1,000,000 standard deduction), and Wyoming keeps members off the public record. The arithmetic usually fails at the second registration: a Wyoming LLC doing business here pays $200 to qualify and then carries both states' filings forever.
Based in Wyoming? Read Wyoming LLC vs Washington LLC →
Compare Washington LLC vs Wyoming 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
Using a formation service? We compare the 4 formation services that pay us a commission, on three-year service cost, BBB rating and Trustpilot score.
Compare LLC formation services →Or by state: Best LLC services in Washington, Best LLC services in Wyoming
Ready to file? Our affiliate partner ZenBusiness files your LLC formation paperwork, from $0 + state fee.
Start your LLC with ZenBusiness →Affiliate link. We may earn a commission at no cost to you. MyStateLLC is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice.
| Factor | Washington | Wyoming |
|---|---|---|
| Filing Fee | $180 by mail, $200 online ($20 online surcharge) | $100 |
| Processing Time | Within 15 business days (paper) | Instant online; up to 15 business days paper |
| Annual Report Fee | $70 | $60 |
| Annual Report Due | Last day of anniversary month | First day of anniversary month |
| State Income Tax | None through 2027; 9.90% above $1M from 2028 | No |
| Anonymous LLC | No | Yes |
| 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 Wyoming LLC cost. Owner privacy options for either state: Washington anonymous LLC guide and Wyoming anonymous LLC guide.
Business Climate: Washington vs Wyoming
| Factor | Washington | Wyoming |
|---|---|---|
| 5-year business survival rate | 42.2% (#51 of 51) | 47.5% (#42 of 51) |
| Business application growth (2026 YTD (Jan to Jul) vs 2025 YTD (same months)) | -25.5% YoY (#15 of 51 by volume) | +13.3% YoY (#22 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 Wyoming
Washington
Wyoming
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 Wyoming charges $100. Wyoming is $100 cheaper upfront. The cost that usually gets overlooked: if you form in Wyoming but operate in Washington, you must also register as a foreign LLC in Washington (a $180 minimum filing) and maintain a registered agent in Wyoming (typically around $150 per year). That puts the realistic first-year cost of the Wyoming route at roughly $430, versus $200 for simply forming in Washington. Both states publish a standard turnaround, Washington (within 15 business days, paper) and Wyoming (instant online; up to 15 business days paper), though a published figure is a norm, not a guarantee.
Taxes: Washington vs Wyoming
Neither Washington nor Wyoming 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. Wyoming charges an annual report license tax of $60 minimum ($62 filed online), based on in-state assets; no franchise or privilege tax otherwise.
Privacy & Asset Protection
Wyoming allows anonymous LLC formation. Member and manager names don't appear on routine public filings. Neither the Articles nor the annual report requires listing members or managers; only an organizer/signer appears, so ownership stays off public filings. Washington doesn't offer that same privacy. Washington's report records the LLC's governors (members/managers) on the public record. 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. Wyoming's charging-order law makes the charging order a creditor's exclusive remedy (including for single-member LLCs) and is widely regarded as the strongest in the country. One important caveat: if you register your Wyoming LLC as a foreign LLC in Washington, that Washington registration is itself a public record, which can undercut much of the privacy benefit for a business that operates in Washington.
Annual Maintenance Costs
Washington LLCs file an annual report ($70, due in the anniversary month), and Wyoming LLCs file an annual report (at least $60, due in the anniversary month). If you form in Wyoming while operating in Washington, you maintain filings in both states, Wyoming's report plus Washington's equivalent for your foreign registration, and pay a Wyoming registered agent roughly $150 per year. Counting report fees, the agent and any entity-level tax, that brings the Wyoming route to roughly $280 a year, versus about $70 to keep a domestic Washington LLC in good standing. The taxes inside those totals: Washington imposes the Business & Occupation (B&O) tax on gross receipts. Wyoming charges an annual report license tax of $60 minimum ($62 filed online), based on in-state assets; no franchise or privilege tax otherwise.
When Wyoming Actually Makes Sense
Forming in Wyoming makes sense in a few specific situations: you need anonymous ownership. Washington puts owner or manager information on public filings and Wyoming doesn't (usually via a holding company, since operating in Washington still requires a public foreign registration there), your business genuinely operates in Wyoming, with a real office, employees, or property there, or you're relocating to Wyoming in the near future. For a typical small business based in Washington, none of these usually apply. Registering a Wyoming LLC to do business back home means at least $180 in Washington foreign-registration fees, on top of Wyoming'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
Ready to form your LLC?
Using a formation service? We compare the 4 formation services that pay us a commission, on three-year service cost, BBB rating and Trustpilot score.
Compare LLC formation services →Or by state: Best LLC services in Washington, Best LLC services in Wyoming
Our affiliate partner ZenBusiness files your LLC formation paperwork, from $0 + state fee.
Start your LLC with ZenBusiness →Affiliate link. We may earn a commission at no cost to you. MyStateLLC is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice.
More State Comparisons
Embed this comparison, free
Add the Washington vs Wyoming cost calculator to any page. Works in WordPress, Squarespace, Webflow, and any HTML site.
<iframe src="https://www.mystatellc.com/tools/compare-states?embed=1&stateA=WA&stateB=WY" width="100%" height="720" frameborder="0" style="border:0;max-width:900px;display:block;margin:0 auto;" title="Washington vs Wyoming LLC Cost Comparison" loading="lazy"></iframe> <p style="text-align:center;font-size:.8125rem;color:#6b7280">Source: <a href="https://www.mystatellc.com/llc/compare/washington-llc-vs-wyoming-llc">MyStateLLC, Washington vs Wyoming LLC Comparison</a></p>
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. Where we hold the citation but no stable public link, the citation is printed on its own rather than pointed at a guessed address.
- Wyoming statute: W.S. 17-29-503 (charging order remedy)
- 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.wyo.gov/Business/Default.aspxWyoming Secretary of State: business entity filings
- sos.wyo.gov/Business/docs/BusinessFees.pdfWyoming 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.