Cheapest LLC formation in Wisconsin

What does Wisconsin charge to form and keep an LLC?

The Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions (DFI) sets these fees, and they are the same whether you file or a service files for you. The method you choose does change them: online is cheaper for the Articles, the annual report and an agent change.

Formation is a one-time charge of $130 online or $170 by mail, depending only on how you file.

The yearly charge is the annual report: $25 online or $40 by mail, the paper figure including a $15.00 paper surcharge. It falls due during the calendar quarter in which the registration anniversary falls, starting the year after registration. Over several years, the online discount on the report adds up to more than the formation saving.⁵

Changing your registered agent costs $10 online or $25 by mail, and DFI's FAQ says the agent can also be changed on the annual report, which can fold the change into a filing you make anyway. Wisconsin has no separate LLC franchise tax for LLCs taxed as partnerships or disregarded entities, though corporation-taxed LLCs pay Wisconsin corporate franchise/income tax. We don't cite a name reservation or foreign registration fee for Wisconsin, so check those with DFI if they apply to you.^{1, 6, 7}

What raises the cost of a Wisconsin LLC?

Five things lift the bill above the state's base fees: filing on paper, paying for a rush, a paid registered agent, a provider's report-filing service, and plans that bill every year.

Paper and rush fees

DFI says online filings are usually accepted on receipt with immediate notice. That leaves little reason to pay for speed when filing online. Paper is different: there is no standard time published for paper filings, and the paid options are a $100 next-business-day expedite or, at the counter, $250 within 4 hours and $500 within 1 hour. Each comes on top of the paper filing fee. Unless a deadline forces paper, the cheapest and fastest path is the online form.^{5, 8}

The registered agent

Every Wisconsin LLC needs an agent whose office is an actual physical location with a street address (Wis. Stat. § 183.0115). It is the cost most likely to recur, and there are three ways to handle it.⁹

1. Serve yourself, if you meet the rules. The agent then costs nothing, but your street address goes on the record and you need to be reachable there. Who may serve is covered in the Wisconsin registered agent guide.
2. Take a formation package that bundles the first year, then pay the renewal or switch.
3. Buy agent service on its own at one of the standalone prices below.

Switching after a free year costs $10 online. File the change before cancelling the old provider so the LLC always has an agent; how to change a registered agent gives the order of steps.

Report-filing services

Filing the report yourself costs $25 online. Providers charge their own fee on top of that state fee: InCorp lists $89 + state fees, LegalZoom $99 + state filing fees, ZenBusiness $100 per report and Northwest $100 + state fees, charged at filing. Swyft's ComplianceGuard $199/year starts as a 14-day free trial then auto-charged, so it becomes a yearly bill unless you cancel. If you are comfortable with a short online form, this is the easiest line to cut.^{10, 11, 12, 13, 14}

Plans that renew

Several of the cheapest-looking options turn into yearly charges. doola's Starter is $297/yr, Tailor Brands' Essential and Elite bill every year, and ZenBusiness's Starter carries Worry-Free Compliance free for 1 year (then $199/yr). Note each renewal date when you sign up.^{15, 16}

A missed report

Missing the report doesn't save money. DFI lists no late fee, but the LLC becomes delinquent, and DFI says that status may be cured by filing a current report and paying back annual report fees. The consequences are on staying compliant in Wisconsin.⁵

Which providers have the lowest published prices for a Wisconsin LLC?

The table gives each provider's agent price, renewal and lowest-priced formation package. Rows follow our score, highest first, with ties in editorial order, so the table isn't sorted by price.

Below, in the same order, is what each provider's cheapest route adds to the Wisconsin filing fee, and what keeps costing money afterwards.

Tailor Brands. Lite is $0 plus state fees and doesn't list an agent, so add $199/year or serve yourself. Essential, at $199/yr plus state fees, includes annual compliance (report filing and updates), which in Wisconsin replaces filing the report yourself but bills yearly. Tailor Brands review.^{17, 18}

ZenBusiness. Starter is $0 + state fees (does not renew), and the agent is an add-on +$199/yr. It offers 50% off the first year ($99) when you form an LLC; the agent renews at $199/yr. ZenBusiness review.^{16, 19}

LegalZoom. Its lowest package is $0 + state filing fees, covering the Articles of organization. The agent is $249/year (first-time registered agent customers); it renews at the purchase rate each year, with the rate subject to change. LegalZoom review.^{20, 21}

Bizee. Basic is $0 + state fee with the agent's first year included. In year one that leaves the $130 online state fee as the main cost; from year two, the agent's $149/year (ongoing annual fee) plus the state's report fee. Bizee review.⁴

Swyft Filings. Basic is $0 + state fees, with no agent listed. Its agent is $149 per quarter ($596/year), the highest yearly agent cost here, and the ComplianceGuard trial needs cancelling if you don't want it. Swyft Filings review.^{22, 23}

doola. Starter is $297/yr and includes the agent, but the whole plan renews each year, so the second year costs the plan again plus the report. doola review.¹⁵

Northwest Registered Agent. Formation is $39 + State Fees, described as a total that includes one year of registered agent service on its corporation page; confirm that for an LLC. The agent alone is $125 per year, and agent customers are auto-enrolled in its report filing ($100 + state fees, charged at filing), so ask how to opt out if you plan to file yourself. Northwest review.^{24, 25, 26}

Rocket Lawyer. Formation comes with a membership, with the first registration free with a Rocket Lawyer membership. Standard, $149/year, leaves out the agent; the agent at $125 with a Plus or Pro membership needs Plus ($249/year) or Pro ($349/year). Rocket Lawyer review.^{27, 28, 29}

InCorp Services. InCorp prices formation starting at $99 plus state fees, with the registered agent sold separately at $129 per state per year. Under its terms, the service continues and is billed at then-current fee unless a cancellation condition is met. Its report service, at $89 + state fees, is the lowest-priced published one here. InCorp review.^{10, 30, 31, 32}

Harbor Compliance. Formation starts at $99 plus state fees. The agent is $99 first year (new customers), then $159 annually, and stopping the renewal takes notice at least 90 days before the end of the current term. Harbor Compliance review.^{33, 34, 35}

Agent prices on their own, for every state, are on cheapest registered agent services. For how the packages compare beyond price, see Wisconsin LLC formation services compared and registered agents for Wisconsin LLCs.