How much does it cost to start an LLC in Wisconsin?

Articles of Organization (Form Corp 502) cost $130 filed online through the Department of Financial Institutions, or $170 on paper. The recurring cost after that is a $25 annual report, $40 if filed on paper. Expedited next-business-day handling adds $100.

How much is the Wisconsin LLC annual report fee?

$25 for a domestic Wisconsin LLC filed online, or $40 on paper. A foreign LLC registered in Wisconsin pays $65 online or $80 on paper. There is no flat late fee - you simply pay the back annual report fees to cure delinquency.

When is the Wisconsin LLC annual report due?

During the calendar year quarter in which the anniversary of your articles' effective date falls, per Wis. Stat. 183.0212(3)(a) - so effectively March 31, June 30, September 30 or December 31. Your first report is not due until the year after the calendar year you formed, so a 2026 LLC first files in 2027.

Can students form an LLC in Wisconsin for free?

Yes. Under Wis. Stat. 183.0122(2)(d), added by 2025 Act 224, the Department of Financial Institutions may not collect a fee for filing Articles of Organization if all members on formation are 'student entrepreneurs' - at least 18 years old and enrolled in a Wisconsin postsecondary institution, a Wisconsin public, private or tribal high school, or a home-based private educational program. That takes the normal $130 fee to $0.

LLC Costs · WI

How Much Does an LLC Cost in Wisconsin?

By Edmond Hui · Fees verified July 29, 2026 against the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions fee schedule

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.

Forming an LLC in Wisconsin costs $130 to file the Articles of Organization with the state, the Annual Report costs $25 every year. That puts the first-year state cost at $155, before any registered-agent service.

Articles of Organization$130

Annual Report$25

First-year state cost$155

Five-year state cost$255

What you actually pay in Wisconsin

Wisconsin's Department of Financial Institutions charges $130 for Articles of Organization filed online but $170 on paper, and $25 for the annual report online versus $40 on paper - so filing online saves $40 up front and $15 a year. Under 2025 Act 224 there is now no filing fee at all for Articles of Organization if every member on formation is a 'student entrepreneur' - at least 18 years old and enrolled in a Wisconsin postsecondary institution, a Wisconsin public, private or tribal high school, or a home-based educational program. An LLC taxed as a partnership owes no Wisconsin entity-level tax and no economic development surcharge. A certificate of status is $10 and a certified copy is $10.

Wisconsin LLC fee breakdown

Cost	Amount	How often	Charged by
Articles of Organization (Corp 502)	$130	One time	Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions
Same filing, submitted on paper	$170	One time	Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions
Annual Report	$25	Every year	Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions
Required state cost, first year	$155	—	—
Registered agent service (optional)	$50–$300	Every year	Commercial provider
Expedited processing (optional) — Next day (by close of the first business day after receipt) $100, Within 4 hours (in person at the Madison counter) $250, Within 1 hour (in person at the Madison counter) $500	$100+	One time	Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions
Name reservation (optional)	$15	One time	Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions
Certificate of good standing (optional)	$10	Per copy	Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions

Wis. Stat. 183.0122(2)(a)1 sets the base fee at $130 and 183.0122(2)(c) lets the Department of Financial Institutions charge more for paper; DFI's published fee schedule shows $130 for organization via online filing and $170 on paper, a $40 penalty for filing on paper.

Nothing in Wis. Stat. ch. 183 imposes a newspaper-publication requirement to form an LLC.

Registered agent is listed separately because it is a commercial service, not a state charge. Commercial registered-agent services, not a state charge. Range and $125 midpoint match the assumption used by /tools/llc-true-cost. Most states let you serve as your own registered agent at no cost if you have a physical in-state address. Run your own numbers in the true-cost calculator.

Wisconsin LLC cost over five years

State charges only in the first column; the second adds a registered-agent service at the $125/yr market midpoint.

Period	State cost only	With registered agent
Year 1 (formation + first filing)	$155	$280
Each year after	$25	$150
Five-year total	$255	$880

First filing timing: Wis. Stat. 183.0212(3)(a) requires a domestic LLC to deliver its annual report 'in each year following the calendar year in which' the articles of organization became effective, during the quarter containing the anniversary date. So an LLC formed at any point in 2026 files its first annual report in 2027, at the end of its formation quarter.

Is Wisconsin expensive compared with other states?

Wisconsin ranks 22nd cheapest of 50 states on first-year cost — $79.53 below the $234.53 national average. On ongoing annual cost it ranks 21st.

Cheaper state	First-year cost	You would save
Montana	$35	$120
Arizona	$50	$105
Missouri	$50	$105

A cheaper filing fee elsewhere rarely saves money if you live and operate in Wisconsin. Doing business here with an out-of-state LLC generally means registering it as a foreign LLC in Wisconsin anyway — paying both states. See foreign qualification in Wisconsin before forming elsewhere to save on fees.

Wisconsin filing deadline and late penalties

Annual Report

Frequency	every year
Due	During the calendar year quarter in which the anniversary of the effective date of the articles of organization occurs - in practice March 31, June 30, September 30 or December 31 depending on the formation quarter
Fee	$25

Neither Wis. Stat. 183.0122 nor DFI-CCS 10.01 sets a flat late fee for a missed annual report. DFI states delinquent status is cured by filing a current annual report and paying the back annual report fees; if the LLC has already been administratively dissolved, reinstatement costs $100 under DFI-CCS 10.01(7).

Under Wis. Stat. 183.0708(1)(b) a ground for administrative dissolution arises once the annual report has not been on file for one year after it was due. DFI may then notice the registered agent, and the LLC has 60 days from the effective date of that notice to cure before DFI may dissolve it (183.0708(3)). Exclusive rights to the company name terminate on the dissolution date (183.0708(4m)). Reinstatement under 183.0709 costs $100 plus all fees and penalties owed, relates back to the dissolution date, and - unusually - carries no statutory deadline.

Full Wisconsin annual report filing guide · Deadline calculator

Cost traps specific to Wisconsin

The annual report deadline is a quarter, not a date

Wis. Stat. 183.0212(3)(a) requires a domestic LLC to file during the calendar year quarter in which the anniversary of the articles' effective date falls, meaning an effective deadline of March 31, June 30, September 30 or December 31. An LLC formed in February files by March 31, not on its February anniversary.

Filing on paper costs $40 more

DFI charges $170 for Articles of Organization on paper against $130 online, and $40 for a paper annual report against $25 online. The paper premium is a pure penalty for using the mail - nothing about the filing changes.

Dissolution comes a year late, then moves fast

A ground for administrative dissolution only arises once the annual report is a full year overdue (Wis. Stat. 183.0708(1)(b)), but once DFI notices your registered agent you have just 60 days to cure. Exclusive rights to your company name terminate on the dissolution date, and reinstatement costs $100 plus all back fees.

Frequently Asked Questions

: Articles of Organization (Form Corp 502) cost $130 filed online through the Department of Financial Institutions, or $170 on paper. The recurring cost after that is a $25 annual report, $40 if filed on paper. Expedited next-business-day handling adds $100.
: $25 for a domestic Wisconsin LLC filed online, or $40 on paper. A foreign LLC registered in Wisconsin pays $65 online or $80 on paper. There is no flat late fee - you simply pay the back annual report fees to cure delinquency.
: During the calendar year quarter in which the anniversary of your articles' effective date falls, per Wis. Stat. 183.0212(3)(a) - so effectively March 31, June 30, September 30 or December 31. Your first report is not due until the year after the calendar year you formed, so a 2026 LLC first files in 2027.
: Yes. Under Wis. Stat. 183.0122(2)(d), added by 2025 Act 224, the Department of Financial Institutions may not collect a fee for filing Articles of Organization if all members on formation are 'student entrepreneurs' - at least 18 years old and enrolled in a Wisconsin postsecondary institution, a Wisconsin public, private or tribal high school, or a home-based private educational program. That takes the normal $130 fee to $0.

Where these numbers come from

Every fee above was checked against Wisconsin's own published sources on July 29, 2026 — the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions fee schedule, the governing statute, and where a state-level tax applies, the state tax authority. Commercial formation-service pages were not used.

The first-year total is the Articles of Organization fee plus the first year of any recurring state charge. Where a state's first report is not due until the following year, that is noted above. The five-year total is the filing fee plus five years of recurring charges, which avoids the timing question entirely. Registered-agent service is excluded from all state figures.

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