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Last Updated: April 24, 2025
Trying to find the top LLC service providers in California for your business? Whether you’re a first-time entrepreneur or an experienced business owner, choosing the right LLC formation service can save you time, money, and stress. In this comparison guide, we break down top providers like ZenBusiness, LegalZoom, Bizee (formerly Incfile), and Northwest Registered Agent. You’ll see how they stack up in terms of pricing, features, and customer support — plus what each service is best known for. If you’re looking for great value and reliable service, ZenBusiness is a standout option for forming an LLC in California.
If you’re looking for an overall, excellent LLC formation service in California, go with us at ZenBusiness. We’ve already formed 800,000+ businesses since 2017!
✔ Free LLC formation (only pay California state fees)✔ $5,000 grant program for customers✔ 60-day money-back guarantee✔ 21555+ reviews with a 4.8 average rating✔ Award-winning customer support✔ Extended customer service hours, including Saturdays and Sundays✔ Socially conscious company (Public Benefit Corporation)
✘ Registered agent service costs extra after the first year✘ Some advanced features require higher-tier plans
If you want socially conscious California LLC formation services with a service discount, choose ZenBusiness.
Another LLC service is Bizee (formerly known as Infile), with a basic formation service that would only require you to pay California’s state filing fee. Bizee is a well-known choice, with more than one million businesses formed since they opened in 2004. They also have a variety of features to suit a business owner’s needs.
✔ Free LLC formation (only pay California state fees)✔ Includes one year of registered agent service ($119/yr afterward)✔ Large customer base with 20,932+ reviews (as of April 2025)✔ Phone and email support
✘ Lots of upsells can increase overall costs✘ Customer support can be slow during peak times✘ No weekend phone support available
Keep in Mind: Even though their California LLC formation service is free, you’re going to deal with more upsells and potentially higher overall prices as a result.
Want to learn more? See our Bizee review.
LegalZoom is the most well-known service in this industry, handling millions of LLC formations since 1999. They handle huge volumes of entity formations in California and offer legal services beyond formations.
✔ Established brand with 4 million+ LLCs formed✔ Extended customer service hours, including Saturdays✔ Offers legal services beyond California LLC formation
✘ Aggressive upsells during the ordering process✘ Registered agent service is expensive ($249/yr)✘ Not the best value compared to other services available in California
Want to learn more? See our LegalZoom review.
Northwest Registered Agent also offers a good business formation service in California, with personalized customer support as their standout feature. They’ve been forming businesses since 1998.
✔ Personalized customer support✔ Includes one year of registered agent service ($125/yr afterward)✔ Industry experience since 1998
✘ Higher starting price than competitors who offer free California LLC formation✘ No customer service hours on Saturday or Sunday and no chat support✘ Limited brand recognition compared to larger competitors
Want to learn more? See our Northwest Registered Agent review.
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In addition to the costs of a business formation service or hiring an attorney (which are optional, as we’ve discussed), there are quite a few other required and optional expenses when forming and maintaining a California business. You cannot form an LLC in California without filing the Articles of Organization, the document that officially registers your business within the state. Read more about California LLC costs.
We invite you to take a look at our guide to forming a limited liability company in California. This article walks you through the LLC formation process in this state step by step, helping ensure that you don’t miss any crucial elements.
One of the most important steps in forming a California LLC is choosing a business name. Once you come up with ideas for your name, you should do a preliminary search through the state’s business search database to make sure your desired name is available. However, it’s important to note that this tool is unofficial.
Once you’ve verified that your name is available using the business search database, you’ll need to mail a Name Availability Inquiry Letter to make this process official. For more information on conducting a business name search in California, check out our California business search article.
You can file your Articles of Organization online through the California Secretary of State’s BizFile tool, or you can print off a paper form and mail it to the Secretary of State’s office.
All California LLCs are required to file a California Statement of Information every two years. This filing costs $20, and you can file it online. In addition, each LLC must pay the state’s annual LLC tax with Form 3522, which costs $800 each year.
To find out which state permits and licenses are applicable to your business, head on over to the state’s “CalGold” permit and license website, where you can find extensive information about licensing requirements in this state.
The California Secretary of State has a handy page on their website where they display current turnaround times for LLC formations in real time. Do you need your business formed in a hurry? California has a few options, but they’re very expensive. They will form your LLC in 24 hours for $350, four hours for $500, or same day for $750. We will note that to qualify for the four-hour service, your documents must be precleared and approved by the state.
If you want more details about what these companies can offer in this state, or you’d like to take a look at some other options, check out our complete guide to California agents for service of process.
Unfortunately, not all businesses last forever. If the time comes when you need to close your LLC’s doors, you’ll need to do so in a manner consistent with the state’s regulations. That’s why we wrote our guide to California LLC dissolutions, so you can complete the process in a compliant manner.
If your LLC already exists in another state, you don’t actually need to “form” it in California. Instead, you’ll need to foreign-qualify the business in this state. This process is somewhat similar to LLC formation, but there are some crucial differences as well. Take a look at our guide to foreign qualifications in California for more information.
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Disclaimer: The content on this page is for information purposes only and does not constitute legal, tax, or accounting advice. If you have specific questions about any of these topics, seek the counsel of a licensed professional.
Written by Team ZenBusiness
ZenBusiness has helped people start, run, and grow over 800,000 dream companies. The editorial team at ZenBusiness has over 20 years of collective small business publishing experience and is composed of business formation experts who are dedicated to empowering and educating entrepreneurs about owning a company.
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