Best LLC formation services in Ohio

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

Pick a name, line up a statutory agent, file the Articles through Ohio Business Central or on paper, choose a speed, then get an EIN and sign an operating agreement.

The order is deliberate. Checking the name and the agent first is quicker than fixing either after the Articles are filed.

1. Search the name. Look it up in the Secretary of State's business search before anything else. To hold a name while you sort out other details, file Form 534B; the reservation costs $39 and lasts 180 days. If you're ready to file now, a reservation adds cost without adding protection.³
2. Choose the statutory agent. The statute allows "A natural person who is a resident of this state", or one of the entities it lists, beginning "A domestic or foreign corporation, nonprofit corporation, limited liability company". Ohio's paperwork calls the naming the Original Appointment of Statutory Agent. Who qualifies, address rules and acting as your own agent are on the Ohio statutory agent guide.^{2, 4}
3. Complete the Articles of Organization. The form is the Articles of Organization for a Domestic Limited Liability Company (Form 610). A service fills it in from your order; filing yourself, you complete it directly.¹
4. Pick a filing route. The Secretary of State lists its options as Online (Ohio Business Central), by mail, or in person.³
5. Decide on speed. Regular service is 3 to 7 business days at no extra charge. The paid tiers are Expedite 1: $100 (2 business days), Expedite 2: $200 (1 business day) and Expedite 3: $300 (4 hours if received by 1:00 p.m.; in-person delivery required). All in addition to the filing fee. The form also lists a Preclearance Filing for $50.¹
6. Apply for an EIN. The IRS, not Ohio, issues the Employer Identification Number, and banks typically ask for it before opening a business account. Some packages include it; others charge separately.
7. Put an operating agreement in writing. It records ownership shares, voting and what happens when a member leaves.
8. Plan for afterwards. For annual reports, the state's position on LLCs is "No annual report required". The Commercial Activity Tax (CAT) applies only to receipts above a $6 million annual exclusion. Staying compliant in Ohio covers both.^{5, 6}

What does an Ohio LLC cost with and without a service?

The state's charges don't change with the route you take, and every package below adds them on top of its own price.

What a package leaves out decides how far it rises above the state fee. The table below shows, for each provider's cheapest package, whether the agent, EIN and operating agreement come with it, as the provider describes them.

"Not listed" means the package description doesn't mention the item. Prices for the add-ons appear in each provider's paragraph below.

Next is each provider's agent price and cheapest formation package, ordered by our score, highest first, with ties in editorial order.

Compare provider handling time with the state's own. Ohio's regular service, 3 to 7 business days, is shorter than several providers' own preparation windows, and ZenBusiness, for one, says its timing excludes Secretary of State time. The full first-year and later-year totals, with agent renewals, are on the cheapest ways to form an Ohio LLC.^{1, 13}

What does each formation package include for an Ohio LLC?

These paragraphs cover formation packages only, in the order of the provider table above. For the agent services themselves, see Ohio statutory agent services compared.

Tailor Brands

Lite costs $0 plus state fees and lists LLC formation processed within 14 business days, so for a quick Ohio filing the service's window is the longer part of the wait. The description also notes no annual compliance, operating agreement or branding tools. Essential ($199/yr plus state fees) is billed yearly, with timing listed as "Essential/Elite: within 1 business day", which puts the state's own window back in charge of the date. None of the package descriptions mention an agent, which is sold at $199/year. The Tailor Brands review lists the rest of each plan.^{8, 14}

ZenBusiness

Starter is $0 + state fees (does not renew). ZenBusiness gives its timing as "Starter: 7-10 days", a figure that excludes Secretary of State time, so in Ohio the state's own regular window comes on top. The EIN and operating agreement are +$99 add-ons. For speed, there's a Rush upgrade +$79 on Starter. The agent is sold apart on every tier. Read the ZenBusiness review.¹³

LegalZoom

LegalZoom's lowest tier is $0 + state filing fees and lists Articles of organization, with a name check and a tax consultation as separate items. An EIN is $79 and an operating agreement Starts at $99. Its higher tiers add attorney consultations (Pro, $249 + state filing fees) and bookkeeping tools (Premium, $299 + state filing fees). More in the LegalZoom review.^{15, 16, 17}

Bizee

Bizee's Basic is $0 + state fee and includes the agent for the first year, after which it renews at $149/year (ongoing annual fee). Basic has no EIN or operating agreement; those cost $70 and +$99, or come in Standard ($199 + state fee: Basic plus EIN, operating agreement, faster processing (~2 weeks)). Bizee's timing is its own estimate, not Ohio's. See the Bizee review.^{18, 19, 20}

Swyft Filings

Swyft's Basic is $0 + state fees and processes in 7-10 business days. Standard, offered at a promotional $169 + state fees, cuts the service's own handling ("Standard 3 business days") and adds an operating agreement along with banking paperwork. No agent is listed with either; on its own it is $149 per quarter ($596/year). Its annual-report trial has nothing to file for an Ohio-only LLC. The Swyft Filings review has the details.^{9, 21}

doola

doola's Starter is $297/yr, a yearly charge, and covers LLC filing, EIN, US bank account guidance, US business address, registered agent. It quotes 1-2 business days filing before Ohio's processing begins. doola says it can help U.S. citizens and "a non-resident without a US SSN"; see agents for non-resident founders. Read the doola review.^{10, 22, 23}

Northwest Registered Agent

Northwest's LLC package is $39 + State Fees, listing filing plus free domain name, open source website, phone line, business email, business address, brand protection. Its LLC page doesn't say an agent is included, so ask. The operating agreement is a Free template; an EIN costs extra, rising to $200 without SSN. See the Northwest review.^{24, 25, 26}

Rocket Lawyer

Rocket Lawyer's formation offer reads "First registration free with a Rocket Lawyer membership", and memberships start at $149/year. The agent needs Plus ($249/year) or higher and costs $125 with a Plus or Pro membership. No operating agreement is listed with formation. The Rocket Lawyer review explains each tier.^{27, 28, 29}

InCorp

InCorp's formation is starting at $99 plus state fees, with the registered agent sold separately at $129 per state per year. Its rush option is a $50.00 InCorp expedite fee (state expedite fee extra), so an Ohio expedite tier would be charged in addition. EIN and operating agreement aren't itemized in the package. See the InCorp review.^{30, 31, 32}

Harbor Compliance

Harbor's formation price reads "Starting at $99 plus state fees", and the page lists Name check, articles, registered agent, EIN, operating agreement, without saying which tier carries which item. On speed, Harbor lists Expedited state processing available in most states (price not published), so ask whether Ohio's own expedite fee would be added on top. Read the Harbor Compliance review.³³

Should you file Ohio's Articles yourself or use a service?

Filing yourself costs $99 plus any expedite tier you pick. A service saves the form-filling and may bundle an agent, an EIN or an operating agreement, at its own price.¹

Ohio residents can name themselves as statutory agent and skip that fee, since Ohio Rev. Code § 1706.09 allows "A natural person who is a resident of this state". What they give up is privacy and flexibility: the agent's address appears on the state's record, and someone needs to be reachable there to accept legal papers.

Speed is where Ohio's own numbers favour self-filers. With regular state service at 3 to 7 business days, a provider's own preparation time can be longer than the state's, so a self-filer who files online can be done sooner. If you need the LLC by a set date, the state's paid tiers in the fees table are the lever that changes the state's timing; a provider's rush fee alone doesn't.¹

Watch for renewals. Several packages bundle a free or discounted first year of an agent or compliance service that then bills at full price; ZenBusiness's Starter, for example, lists Worry-Free Compliance free for 1 year (then $199/yr). In Ohio, compliance services built around annual reports have nothing to file for a single-state LLC, though they may still send reminders. An LLC already formed elsewhere doesn't use the domestic Articles at all; it files the Registration of a Foreign Limited Liability Company, Form 617 instead.^{13, 34}

Owners with partners, investors or a licensed profession may want a lawyer to draft the operating agreement rather than relying on a template. Filing terms are defined in the glossary.