Best LLC formation services in Georgia

How do you form an LLC in Georgia, step by step?

Pick a name the state will accept, line up a registered agent, file the Articles online or by mail, choose a speed, then get the EIN and an operating agreement and diary the first annual registration.

The state's own figures show paper as the slow route, so the filing method gets a step of its own.

1. Check the name. Search the Secretary of State's business records for conflicts first. A reservation costs $35 for 30 days. That window is short, so a reservation helps mainly when the filing has to wait, for example while a co-owner signs on.²
2. Line up the agent. Under O.C.G.A. § 14-11-209, Georgia allows an individual resident of this state, a corporation, another limited liability company, or a foreign company authorized in Georgia. The agent's office becomes the LLC's registered office. You or a co-owner can fill the role if you are a Georgia resident, or a commercial service can; the Georgia registered agent guide explains each choice.³
3. Fill in the Articles. The state's form is the Articles of Organization (Form CD 030). Online, you complete it in the Secretary of State's portal; the state also describes a paper online route that means uploading your own articles.¹
4. Pick the filing route. You can file online or by mail. Speed depends on the route: online takes approximately 7 business days, paper online about 10-14 business days, and mail about 15 business days, and the state notes that timing varies with workload. A mailed filing goes with the Transmittal Form CD 231.¹
5. Decide whether to pay for speed. The expedited fee is in addition to the regular filing fee. The tiers are two business days +$120, same day +$275 and one hour +$1,200. The state's domestic-entity guide lists the one-hour option only in its mail-filing section, so check that route before relying on it.⁴
6. Get an EIN. The Employer Identification Number is the federal tax ID the IRS issues to the LLC. Banks usually want it before opening an account.
7. Write an operating agreement. It records ownership shares, voting and what happens when a member leaves. Several packages include a template.
8. Diary the annual registration. The first annual registration is due in the calendar year after formation, and it is filed January 1 to April 1 each year for $60. Staying compliant in Georgia covers it in depth.¹

The state pages cited here don't publish a newspaper notice rule for new LLCs, so ask the Corporations Division before paying anyone to publish one.

What does a Georgia LLC cost with and without a service?

The state's fees don't change with the route you take. Every price below is added on top of them.

Filing online with the cheapest paid speed puts the state's part at $110 ($100 filing fee + $10 service charge) plus $120. The next table lists each provider's published agent price and cheapest package, ordered by our score, highest first, ties in editorial order.⁴

Because Georgia LLCs file an annual registration every year, the table below adds that service to the comparison of cheapest packages.

"Not listed" means the provider's package description doesn't mention the item. Each provider's filing fee comes on top of the state's $60 ($50 filing fee + $10 service charge). The first and second-year totals, agent renewals included, are worked out on the cheapest ways to form a Georgia LLC.

What does each provider's formation package include for a Georgia LLC?

The paragraphs follow the provider table's order: our score, highest first, ties in editorial order. They cover formation packages only.

A provider's own handling time comes before the Secretary of State's processing, and only the state's expedite fee shortens the state's part. The agent services themselves are compared on Georgia registered agent services compared.

Tailor Brands

Lite, at $0 plus state fees, has Tailor Brands handle the LLC within 14 business days, which can run longer than the state's own online processing, and its listing notes no annual compliance, operating agreement or branding tools. The middle plan, $199/yr plus state fees, moves handling to within 1 business day and adds an operating agreement and annual compliance (report filing and updates), so the spring registration is filed for you while you keep paying for the plan. The top plan costs $249/yr plus state fees. Neither upper plan is a one-off charge.⁵

Tailor Brands doesn't list an agent in any plan and prices it separately at $199/year. Its EIN filing service has no published price.⁶

ZenBusiness

Starter costs $0 + state fees (does not renew). ZenBusiness quotes 7-10 days for its own part and says that figure excludes Secretary of State time, so in Georgia the state's queue comes after it. Starter includes Worry-Free Compliance free for 1 year (then $199/yr), and Rush handling costs extra (Rush upgrade +$79 on Starter), as do the EIN and operating agreement (EIN and operating agreement are +$99 add-ons). Pro, $199 + state fees, renews at $199/yr, folds the Georgia registration into its ongoing filing compliance (state-required annual report filings and up to 2 amendments per year). No tier includes the agent, which is an add-on +$199/yr.⁷

LegalZoom

LegalZoom's entry package, $0 + state filing fees, lists the Articles of organization and not much more. A Georgia owner who wants the usual extras buys them one at a time: the EIN at $79, an operating agreement that starts at $99, and the agent at $249/year (first-time registered agent customers). Its next tier costs $249 + state filing fees. For the yearly registration, LegalZoom's filing service is $99 + state filing fees, bills once.^{9, 10, 11, 29, 30}

Bizee

Bizee's Basic, $0 + state fee, is one of the few entry packages here that includes the agent, for its first year; after that, Bizee's agent renews at $149/year (ongoing annual fee). The EIN ($70) and operating agreement (+$99) cost extra on Basic and come with Standard at $199 + state fee. Bizee says Standard's timing includes expedited filing, without saying whether that means Georgia's paid tier, which is worth asking about given what the state charges for it.^{12, 31, 32}

Swyft Filings

Swyft's Basic, $0 + state fees, covers preparation and filing of Articles of Organization. Standard, at $169 + state fees (promotional, 'SAVE $30'; regular $199), adds an operating agreement and a custom banking resolution, and shortens Swyft's side from 7-10 business days to 3 business days. No package lists an agent; Swyft's agent bills $149 per quarter ($596/year). All tiers include a ComplianceGuard trial that lets you access one free annual report. Swyft's ComplianceGuard page describes a 14-day free trial, after which the card is charged $199/year; it doesn't say whether the trial bundled with formation runs on the same terms, so a Georgia owner who plans to file the registration personally should ask when it converts.^{14, 15, 33}

doola

doola's Starter plan, $297/yr, is billed every year and bundles the EIN, a US business address and the agent. doola says it files within 1-2 business days; Georgia's processing follows. It says it can help a non-resident without a US SSN; agent services for non-resident founders covers that group.^{16, 17, 34}

Northwest Registered Agent

Northwest prices formation at $39 + State Fees, and its formation listing adds free domain name, open source website, phone line, business email, business address. Its corporation page lists one year of registered agent service included with formation; its LLC page is silent on that, so ask before ordering. A free template covers the operating agreement, and the EIN costs $50 (with SSN), or $200 without SSN. Once the LLC reaches its first spring registration, Northwest's annual report service ($100 + state fees, charged at filing) becomes relevant.^{19, 20, 21, 35, 36}

Rocket Lawyer

Rocket Lawyer offers the first registration free with a Rocket Lawyer membership. Memberships renew yearly: Standard $149/year, Plus $249/year, Pro $349/year. The agent ($125 with a Plus or Pro membership) and the EIN ($70 with Plus or Pro membership) need Plus or Pro, and the annual report service is $100 with Pro membership, excluding state fees. Its formation listing doesn't mention an operating agreement.^{22, 23, 37, 38, 39}

InCorp

InCorp sells a single formation service, priced starting at $99 plus state fees. The agent is extra, at $129/year. Its own expedite is a $50.00 InCorp expedite fee, and Georgia's tier would be added on top. It charges $69 for an EIN and $89 + state fees for an annual report filing.^{24, 25, 26, 40, 41}

Harbor Compliance

Harbor prices formation starting at $99 plus state fees and says its service covers name check, articles, registered agent, EIN, operating agreement, but doesn't publish which tier includes each item or how long a bundled agent lasts. It says most LLCs are prepared and filed in one business day on its side, and it also sells expedited state processing, with the price not published. Harbor's annual report service is $199 per state per year plus filing fees.^{27, 28, 42}

Should you file the Georgia Articles yourself or use a service?

Filing yourself online costs $110 ($100 filing fee + $10 service charge). A service saves the form work and, in some packages, the EIN and agreement, but it doesn't make the state faster unless the state's expedite fee is paid.²

If you or a co-owner lives in Georgia, that person can be the agent and the LLC avoids the agent fee; your address then appears as the registered office. That is the main trade-off, since a commercial agent's address appears there instead.

The paperwork a service removes is a single state form plus the EIN request. What a package adds in Georgia is usually ongoing: an agent that renews, and often a yearly filing service for the annual registration. Some packages also bill every year themselves. Weigh those against doing the registration yourself each spring for the state's $60 ($50 filing fee + $10 service charge).

The filing route also shapes the decision. Online, Georgia's own turnaround is shorter than several packages' handling times, so a service mostly adds speed if it pays the state's tier for you. A mailed filing needs the transmittal form and takes the longest. The paper online route, which means uploading your own articles, sits between the two. If you need the LLC by a set date, the choice of route and tier counts for more than the choice of provider.¹

Changing course later is inexpensive. If a bundled agent's renewal is more than you want to pay, you can name a new agent on the annual registration at no separate fee, or on an amended registration for $30 during the rest of the year. Owners with co-founders or investors may want a lawyer to review the operating agreement rather than relying on a template. The glossary defines the filing terms used here.²