Best LLC formation services in Texas

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

Clear the name, line up a registered agent, file the certificate online or on paper and pick a speed. Then get the EIN and plan for the yearly franchise tax report.

1. Check the name. Search the state's records for it before you file. To hold a name before filing, the reservation is $40 for 120 days on Form 501; an owner ready to file can skip it.⁴
2. Line up the registered agent. Under Tex. Bus. Orgs. Code § 5.201, the agent is an individual who is a resident of this state, or an organization, other than the filing entity or foreign filing entity to be represented. The LLC can't be its own agent, and the office may not be solely a mailbox service or a telephone answering service. A member living in Texas can take the job; otherwise a commercial agent fills it. The Texas registered agent guide covers who qualifies.⁵
3. Prepare the certificate. The form is the Certificate of Formation to Limited Liability Company (Form 205), filed with the $300 fee. The Texas registered agent guide explains how the agent is named on it.¹
4. Choose a filing method. The state accepts filings through SOSPortal online, by mail, or by delivery in person. Its own guidance says: "For faster processing submit your filing through SOSPortal."¹
5. Choose a speed. We don't cite a standard processing time for regular filings, because the state page we rely on doesn't give one. Texas Express offers Standard Expedited $50, typically 2 to 3 business days. The faster tiers are Next-Day $500 and Same-Day $750 per document, each plus the filing fee. The same-day tier applies to filings received by 12:00 p.m.²
6. Skip publication. Texas has no newspaper notice; the old rule was repealed in 2003.³
7. Get an EIN. The IRS issues the federal tax ID, usually needed for a bank account. Some packages include it and others sell it on its own.
8. Write an operating agreement. It records who owns what and how decisions are made. A template from a package is a starting point; co-owners with unequal stakes may want a lawyer to review it.
9. Plan for the franchise tax report. Texas has no Secretary of State annual report. Instead, LLCs file an annual Franchise Tax Report with a Public Information Report (PIR) with the Comptroller, due May 15. An LLC whose revenue is at or below the $2,650,000 revenue threshold (2026 to 2027 report years) owes no tax, but an information report is still required. Staying compliant in Texas explains when the first report is due.^{3, 6}

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

The state's charges don't change with the route you take, and every package price on this page is quoted before them.

With Standard Expedited, the state's part of the bill is the $300 filing fee plus $50 per document. The Next-Day and Same-Day tiers cost more than the filing itself. If your LLC already exists elsewhere and is registering in Texas, the charge is $750 instead of the formation fee.^{1, 2, 7}

The next table lists each provider's agent price and cheapest package in the order of the site's provider table, which follows our score, highest first, with ties in editorial order.

Package prices tell you less than what a package leaves out. The table below sets each provider's published handling time next to its annual report service, the feature most likely to need a closer look in Texas.

"Not published" means we didn't find the item on the provider's pages. Every annual report service above is described in annual-report terms, and Texas LLCs report to the Comptroller instead, so ask whether a service files the franchise tax report and Public Information Report. The year-by-year arithmetic is on the cheapest ways to form a Texas LLC.

What does each provider's formation package include in Texas?

These paragraphs follow the provider table's order and stick to formation: speed, what is bundled, and what renews. Registered agent services in Texas compares the agent services on their own.

Tailor Brands

Lite is $0 plus state fees, handled within 14 business days, and comes with no annual compliance, operating agreement or branding tools; those items sit in the higher plans. Essential ($199/yr plus state fees) and Elite ($249/yr plus state fees) cut handling to within 1 business day and are yearly plans. Essential adds an operating agreement, compliance filing and a funding search for grants, loans and tax credits (included at no extra cost in Essential and Elite). None of the package lists we cite includes the agent, which costs $199/year on its own, and while an EIN filing service is offered, Tailor Brands doesn't publish what it costs.^{8, 25, 26}

ZenBusiness

Starter costs $0 + state fees (does not renew), with 7-10 days handling that excludes Secretary of State time. Faster handling is a paid upgrade (Rush upgrade +$79 on Starter). Starter bundles Worry-Free Compliance free for 1 year (then $199/yr); the EIN and operating agreement are add-ons at $99 one-time each. Pro is $199 + state fees, renews at $199/yr and covers state-required annual report filings and up to 2 amendments per year. On every tier the agent is an add-on +$199/yr.^{9, 10}

LegalZoom

LegalZoom's Basic package, $0 + state filing fees, lists Articles of organization, a term other states use (in Texas the filing is a certificate of formation), and a "Name check service, to confirm that your preferred business name is available". The EIN is $79 and the operating agreement is priced on its own (Starts at $99). Premium, at $299 + state filing fees, lists Bookkeeping tools, 6-month subscription included. For founders without a Social Security number, an EIN is included in Pro and Premium.^{27, 28, 29, 30}

Bizee

Bizee's Basic package ($0 + state fee) lists "Registered Agent (1st year included)". Standard, at $199 + state fee, is Basic plus EIN, operating agreement, faster processing (~2 weeks). Premium, $299 + state fee, lists expedited filing (~4 business days). Bizee doesn't say whether that timing includes Texas Express fees, so ask before relying on it.¹²

Swyft Filings

Basic is $0 + state fees and processes in 7-10 business days. Standard is $169 + state fees (promotional, 'SAVE $30'; regular $199); the page doesn't say when the promotion ends, and the package adds the operating agreement. Premium handles orders in 1 business day. Its compliance service, ComplianceGuard $199/year, begins with a free trial and then bills automatically (14-day free trial then auto-charged), so note the trial end if you add it.^{14, 15}

doola

doola's Starter plan is $297/yr and includes LLC filing, EIN, US bank account guidance, US business address, registered agent. doola files within 1-2 business days on its side, before the state's own time. Its next plan, $1,999/yr, adds federal and state tax filing; doola's page doesn't say whether that covers the Texas franchise tax report.^{16, 17}

Northwest Registered Agent

Northwest forms the LLC for $39 + State Fees and bundles web and phone extras. Its claim that the price includes a year of agent service appears on its corporation page, and its LLC page is silent on that point, so check with Northwest before you order. The operating agreement costs nothing (Free template), and the EIN is $50 (with SSN); $200 without SSN.^{31, 32, 33, 34}

Rocket Lawyer

Rocket Lawyer's formation page says "Your first one is FREE with a Rocket Lawyer membership!" The cheapest membership, Standard, is $149/year. Memberships start with a free 7-day trial, then billed yearly. The EIN is $70 with Plus or Pro membership, and the agent is $125 with a Plus or Pro membership.^{35, 36, 37, 38}

InCorp

InCorp prices its formation service starting at $99 plus state fees. The agent is sold separately at $129 per state per year, and its EIN service costs $69. InCorp's own expedite charge is the $50.00 InCorp expedite fee, and any state expedite fee is extra, so an expedited Texas filing through InCorp carries both its fee and a Texas Express fee.^{20, 39, 40, 41}

Harbor Compliance

Harbor's formation starts at $99 plus state fees, and its page description mentions name check, articles, registered agent, EIN, and the operating agreement, without saying which tier includes what. It says most LLCs are filed quickly on its side but that the state response varies; in Texas, a Texas Express tier is what speeds the state's side. Expedited state processing is offered (price not published). Harbor doesn't publish which tier includes the agent or for how long.^{22, 23}

Should you file the Texas certificate yourself or use a service?

Filing the Certificate of Formation to Limited Liability Company (Form 205) yourself on SOSPortal costs the $300 state fee and some reading; a service adds its fee in exchange for preparing the form and, in some packages, the agent, EIN and operating agreement.¹

The Texas points that sit around the form are the same either way: the agent's office may not be solely a mailbox service or a telephone answering service, and the yearly report goes to the Comptroller. A provider's handling time and the state's processing are separate clocks. On the state's side, its guidance reads "For faster processing submit your filing through SOSPortal." A Texas Express fee, from $50 per document, moves a filing ahead of regular submissions, whoever submits it.^{1, 2, 5}

Self-filers who live in Texas can name themselves as agent and pay no agent fee. The price is a personal street address on the certificate and on each year's Public Information Report, which also lists all managers (and all members if member-managed).⁴²

Recurring charges deserve a look before checkout. ZenBusiness Pro renews at $199/yr, Tailor Brands' Essential plan is $199/yr plus state fees, every doola plan is priced per year, and bundled compliance offers such as Worry-Free Compliance free for 1 year (then $199/yr) turn into paid plans. The yearly report is due either way. A late one costs a $50 penalty, even when no tax is due. The glossary defines the filing terms, and annual reports explained shows how Texas's approach differs from states with a Secretary of State report.^{6, 8, 9}