Best New York LLC Services

Northwest

Northwest Registered Agent charges $225 (plus state fee) for LLC filing services. That said, Northwest’s personalized customer support is a feature that could make their prices worth paying for some entrepreneurs.

• Higher Prices: Northwest charges $225 + state fee to form an LLC in New York. However, that $225 package does at least include a year of registered agent service.
• Customer Reviews: Northwest receives mostly positive customer feedback, but with several hundred reviews instead of the thousands you’ll find with the other companies in this guide, they can’t match competitors like us for review volume.
• Known for Service: While some competitors outsource customer service to third-party call centers, Northwest keeps its support team in-house.

Overall, Northwest does have some points in its favor. However, keep in mind that it charges $225 (plus your state’s required fee) for its LLC filing services.

Want to learn more? See this Northwest LLC review.

LegalZoom

LegalZoom is one of the biggest names in the industry, with millions of customers served and frequent advertising efforts. LegalZoom provides an LLC filing package for free (plus the state’s fee).

• Higher Average Prices: While LegalZoom charges $0 (+ your state fee) for LLC service, it has higher price points for some other services. For instance, it typically charges a rate of $299 per year for registered agent service and at least $149 to form a corporation.
• Features: LegalZoom sometimes excludes valuable features from its LLC filing service packages. For instance, its Basic LLC service package includes only a digital welcome packet and a trial for a third-party web design service.
• Service Guarantee: Much like ZenBusiness, LegalZoom offers a 60-day, 100% satisfaction guarantee that is among the best in the industry.

LegalZoom is a huge company, so while it offers extended support hours, the quality of its customer support may vary a bit from representative to representative.

Want to learn more? See this LegalZoom LLC review.

Incfile

Incfile offers LLC formations for free, as long as you pay your state’s fee. Incfile and ZenBusiness have some similar characteristics, but there are also some significant differences that set the two apart.

• Lots of Reviews: Incfile has tens of thousands of customer reviews with strong average rating scores.
• Customer Support: If you prioritize responsive customer support, Incfile may not be your best option. At times, their responses can be slow and some customers complain that they don’t get a response at all to emailed support inquiries.
• Upsells: Incfile can also pile on the upsells, with lots of suggested add-on services sprinkled throughout the order form.

If you’re looking for a cheap LLC formation service in New York and ZenBusiness doesn’t feel right for some reason, Incfile could be worth a closer look.

Want to learn more? See this Incfile LLC review.

New York LLC Fast Facts

• LLC Formation Speed: Usually same-day if filed online, paper filings take 7 business days (expedited options: $25 for 24-hour service, $75 for same-day, $150 for 2-hour)
• Cost to File a NY LLC: $250 ($200 for the Articles of Organization and $50 for the required publication certificate), plus the service’s fee if you use one
• How to File Your Articles of Organization: Online or by mail
• Biennial Reports: Due every other year (odd-numbered years only) by the end of your LLC’s anniversary month; costs $9 to file
• State General Business License: Not required, but industry licenses will probably apply
• PLLCs: Permitted, but called a “Professional Service LLC” in NY

What Is a New York LLC?

LLCs are formal legal entities that are typically taxed similarly to sole proprietorships and general partnerships, in that the owners include any company profits or losses into their personal returns — the LLC itself does not owe income taxes.

An LLC may also elect to be taxed like a corporation, although this is not a very common option.

There are similarities to corporations too, especially when it comes to financial responsibilities. In an LLC, the owners or members are not usually personally accountable for the financial status of the business. This means that if someone sues your LLC, your personal assets are not at risk.

New York charges a somewhat high $200 filing fee to form your LLC, which isn’t the absolute highest price in the nation, but it’s still higher than most states’ formation fees. In addition, this state levies an annual fee for all LLCs with a minimum of $25.

New York is one of several states that legally requires LLCs to have an operating agreement. This is an internal document that outlines several of the LLC’s operational details. You don’t need to file the operating agreement with the state, but you do need to have one in your business documents file.

One thing that makes LLC formations unique in New York is that this is one of a small handful of states that requires entrepreneurs to publish proof of their LLC formations in area newspapers. When you form your LLC, you’ll need to take out advertisements in two local newspapers within 120 days of filing your Articles of Organization document with the state.

Once you’ve completed this requirement, each newspaper will send you an affidavit of publication to submit to the Department of State. At this point, the Department of State will provide you with a Certificate of Publication to certify that you have fulfilled the publication step.

The Total Cost of Forming and Maintaining an LLC in New York

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 New York business. You cannot form an LLC in New York without filing the Articles of Organization, the document that officially registers your business within the state. This document has a $200 filing fee.

You will also need to submit a Certificate of Publication ($50), which requires you to post an ad in your local paper alerting the public about who you are and what your new business is. You must post this ad once a week for six weeks in two local papers before you can submit the publication certificate.

Another common requirement is the Biennial Statement, which New York requires you to submit every other year. This simple filing keeps the state up-to-date about some basic but vital business information, such as your address and registered agent. The filing costs just $9.

Then there are taxes to account for. Like most states, New York charges different rates for both pass-through entities and businesses taxed as corporations. But state taxes aren’t the only ones to consider. You’ll also have to pay federal taxes, along with several others.

For instance, if you have employees, you’ll pay unemployment insurance tax. If you sell goods or services, you’ll pay sales and use tax. Depending on the nature of your business, there could be other taxes required, so check with the New York Department of Taxation to make sure.

Other than that, the other potential expenses only apply to certain businesses. These include things like professional or industry-specific business licenses and business insurance.

Pros and Cons of Creating a Limited Liability Company

An LLC is one of the most popular entity types nationwide. But it isn’t the right type for everyone.

Only you can pick which entity type best fits you and your business; after all, you understand your business idea better than anyone. You have a clear vision for your products and services, both present and future.

To truly determine whether an LLC is right for you, it’s helpful to consider the advantages and disadvantages of LLCs.

Pros

• Easier to form and maintain than a corporation
• Personal asset protection
• Flexible taxation structure; can pay as a partnership or a corporation
• Business name is protected for exclusive use within state boundaries

Cons

• No authority to issue stock, so opportunities to raise capital are limited
• Fees are higher than partnerships or sole proprietorships
• Requires more paperwork than some entrepreneurs are comfortable with

Should You Form a New York LLC or Corporation?

Common characteristics

There are some common aspects of the LLC and the corporation, starting with the personal asset protection they both provide. Also known as limited liability, this personal asset protection ensures that if your business is sued, only the business assets are at risk. Meanwhile, your personal assets — like your house, car, personal bank accounts, investments, etc. — are protected by your LLC or corporation’s business structure.

In addition, LLCs and corporations both provide their owners with business name exclusivity. If you own and operate a sole proprietorship or general partnership, you will not have exclusive rights to your business name. Instead, if another company decides to use your name as its own, you won’t be able to stop them. In fact, they could even register your business name and gain exclusive rights to it, forcing you to come up with a new one.

Advantages of the LLC

In general, an LLC is quicker and easier to form than a corporation. LLCs usually need to provide less information for their formation documents than corporations do, and there are fewer steps in the process as well. For instance, LLCs don’t need to draft corporate bylaws, name officers or board members, hold initial board meetings, or issue stock. On the other hand, corporations need to do all of these things and more.

The LLC is also a less rigid business structure that allows its owners greater flexibility. The business structure of a corporation is inflexible, with many regulations dictating how the business should look and function. Meanwhile, LLCs have options for business management structure and ownership responsibilities that corporations simply don’t have.

Another even more valuable option LLCs have is that they can choose how they want to be taxed. Most LLCs are taxed as pass-through entities, which means the business itself does not pay taxes, but the profits are passed through the LLC itself to its owners, who pay taxes on this money on their personal returns. However, LLCs can also opt to be taxed like corporations (either as a C corporation or an S corporation), giving them more options for taxation than a corporation has.

Advantages of the corporation

Corporations have some advantages too, like the ability to sell stock. It’s quite difficult for an LLC to attract outside investments because it cannot issue stock. The vast majority of investors prefer stock as their investment medium, and it’s also very rare to see venture capitalists investing in LLCs. For these reasons, the corporation is a much better option for businesses looking to attract investments.

In addition, the corporation has been around for hundreds of years, while the LLC is a newer addition to the American business landscape. This means that the corporation has more established legalities, and also that it’s easier to expand into other states because the corporation’s structure is essentially the same no matter where you form it.

How to Set Up a New York LLC on Your Own

Technically speaking, you don’t have to use an LLC formation service like ZenBusiness or LegalZoom. These services are incredibly helpful, but you can save money by completing the process yourself.

You can read our complete guide to DIY an LLC setup in New York, but here’s a quick look at the process:

Choose a business name

Every LLC in New York needs a name that’s memorable and gives potential clients a good idea of what goods or services are available. The name also needs to be unique — both for legal reasons and so your business stands out from the competition.

Appoint a NY registered agent

As we’ve mentioned in this guide, every LLC needs an agent who can accept service of process on your behalf. In all states, you can act as your own registered agent as long as you have a physical address in the state. That said, we generally recommend that you appoint someone else (like an online service) to act as your agent.

File the Articles of Organization

This document, once filled out and filed, officially forms your business in the state of New York. You’ll need to provide some important information, including your contact information, your business address, signatures for your LLC’s members, and more. New York charges $200 for the Articles of Organization. You will also file a Certificate of Publication, which requires you to publish a notice about your business in local newspapers. The fee for the Certificate is $50, meaning your total cost to register will be $250, plus the cost of the newspaper advertisements.

Setting up the LLC is as easy as 1-2-3; it’s the maintenance requirements that are a bit more complicated:

Register for and pay taxes

If you have employees, you’ll need to get an Employer Identification Number from the IRS. Then there are state-specific taxes, too. Understandably, one of your largest tax burdens will be the state’s income taxes. Currently, New York has a flat corporate rate of 6.5%; individual rates fall between 4% and 8.82%. You’ll also need to account for the state sales tax (4%). You can learn more about these and other miscellaneous taxes at the New York Department of Taxation and Finance.

Get licenses and permits

There’s no general state business license in New York, but that doesn’t mean you won’t need to get professional licenses, such as those listed on New York’s Licenses Database. There are more than 1,200 licenses across the state, so there’s a good chance at least one will apply to your business.

Create an operating agreement

Even single-member LLCs should create a “master document” that sets out how the business will operate, both now and in the future.

File your biennial report

Every other year (on odd-numbered years), your LLC will need to file a biennial report to update the state about the standing of your business. It’s due by the end of your LLC’s anniversary month, and there is a $9 filing fee.

Obtain business insurance

Every business with employees needs to maintain workers’ compensation insurance and a commercial vehicle policy for company-owned vehicles. You may also want to get a general business liability policy, too.

Get a business bank account

You should sign up for a business bank account so you can write checks and make purchases in the name of the business instead of pulling from your personal accounts (a legal no-no).

This is just the tip of the iceberg, though. For more detailed guidance, we recommend contacting an attorney or checking out the full New York LLC Formation Guide.