If Someone Starts a Blog, Do They Need to Form an LLC?

In today’s digital-focused age, a blog is a popular side hustle. There are many different reasons to start a blog business, from keeping family and friends informed about personal life to updating business clients about a company’s evolving product and service offerings.

A very common question prospective bloggers ask is whether they should form a limited liability company (LLC) for their blogs. In general, the answer varies depending on what the blogger is looking to do with their site, who they’re trying to reach, and whether they want to use the blog to generate income.

This article discusses whether or not bloggers need to form an LLC for their blog. The answer isn’t necessarily as cut and dry as it might seem, so this guide gets to the bottom of this surprisingly nuanced question.

What is an LLC?

Before diving in, it’s helpful to discuss exactly what an LLC is. A limited liability company mixes elements of sole proprietorships, general partnerships, and corporations, essentially giving entrepreneurs the best of these worlds. LLCs 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 (see members definition). This means that if someone sues the LLC, the owner’s personal assets are not at risk. For more information, see the LLC definition page.

In short, LLCs are so popular because they provide a variety of legal protections for a blog, while also enhancing its credibility. But is it really necessary for a blogger to form an LLC?

Does someone need to form an LLC for their blog?

If someone’s simply starting a blog for fun and doesn’t plan to monetize it in any way, they can almost certainly get away with not forming an LLC. If the blog isn’t bringing in any money, there’s really no reason to waste time, effort, and money forming an LLC. After all, if someone isn’t operating a business, they don’t need to form a business structure for their blog.

However, beyond the simple “friends and family” type of blog, or perhaps one that’s written for personal enjoyment, it gets a bit trickier. For forming an LLC to make sense for a blog, it needs to be monetized in some way. Here are a few of the most common ways of doing just that:

1) Adding advertisements to the page: One common way to monetize a blog is to introduce advertising to the site. These ads are usually of the pay-per-click variety, and bloggers can get them from programs like Google AdSense. With a setup like this, bloggers can add banner and sidebar ads to their blog that target users who pursue the same type of content they write about on their blog. While this doesn’t typically generate much money right away, it can be surprising how much it all adds up over time.

2) Affiliate links: In many different industries, affiliate marketing can be a great way to monetize a blog. By partnering with businesses in fields related to the blog’s topics, bloggers can earn money when readers click through and make purchases on the affiliated website.

3) Selling products: If the content of a blog is easily translated into products or services, this can be a great way to generate some extra cash. Depending on the nature of the blog’s posts, this could even be a relatively simple way to start a multifaceted business. For example, a knitting blogger might be able to start selling their own handmade goods.

4) Sponsorships: This typically isn’t going to be something that happens right out of the gates, but once a blog starts gaining some traction, a blogger could be able to get a company to agree to sponsor a blog post. A sponsored blog choice is when the blog author writes a blog specifically tailored to attract customers for that company, and in return, they provide the site with either a share of their profits or a flat fee.

If a blogger decides to pursue any of these monetization techniques, they’re entering a situation where it would definitely be advisable to form an LLC. It’s often advisable to form the LLC before the blog is even monetized; if the blogger waits until after they’ve started transacting business, their initial transactions wouldn’t be covered by personal asset protection.

Operating a business entity without a corporate veil protecting the owner’s assets is almost never advisable, unless the blog covers a topic that doesn’t present any liability whatsoever. Even then, it’s still a safer bet to get an LLC’s limited liability protections.

In Conclusion

For many bloggers, it simply isn’t necessary to form an LLC, because the blog doesn’t generate any income. However, if a blog owner is even considering monetization, it’s probably time to look into creating a formal business entity for personal protection.