Incorporate.com vs. LegalZoom

Quick Summary

With Incorporate.com and LegalZoom, we’re talking about two of the most popular LLC formation service providers available. Each company has a couple of advantages over the other.

First off, LegalZoom has lower pricing than Incorporate.com for LLC formation services. Additionally, their thousands of customer reviews are almost all positive, while Incorporate.com has just a small handful of mixed feedback. On the other hand, Incorporate.com has more longevity than any competitor.

Would you like some more info before making your decision? Read on as we break down the major factors that set these two companies apart.

6 Things They Have in Common

1) Affordable: Whether you choose Incorporate.com or LegalZoom, you can save lots of money over enlisting the services of a traditional business attorney. Many LLC formations aren’t complex enough to necessitate a lawyer, so these providers can fit your needs nicely.

2) Customer Support: One of the best selling points for these companies is customer service. Instead of spending hours digging around on your own whenever you have a question or concern, you can simply email or call them to get your issues resolved quickly.

3) Guaranteed Services: Both of these providers offer strong guarantees to back up their services. LegalZoom has a satisfaction guarantee which states that if you’re unhappy for any reason, they’ll refund the fees you paid them. Incorporate.com has a Corporate Compliance Guarantee which says they’ll pay you up to $75,000 if they make a mistake while filing your formation documents.

4) Experience: If experience matters to you, both of these companies have plenty of it. LegalZoom has served millions of customers, while Incorporate.com has been open since the 19th century.

5) Additional Services: LegalZoom and Incorporate.com both offer many additional services. Whether you need registered agent service or EIN obtainment, they can provide these and many more services.

6) Educational: Incorporate.com and LegalZoom have free learning tools on their websites. If you want to know more about taxation issues, compliance requirements, etc., the information you’re looking for is right at your fingertips.

Side-by-Side Comparisons

Pricing

LegalZoom: While LegalZoom does offer a $0 (+ state fee) package for LLCs, the number of upsells can get overwhelming — and expensive. They charge $249 per year for registered agent service.

Incorporate.com: Their pricing starts at $99 (+ state fee) for a package that only includes the basics. Even though they have some valuable features, Incorporate.com’s two premium packages, priced at $634 and $734, are too expensive for what you get.

Experience

LegalZoom: LegalZoom has served more than 2 million business customers since it started offering business services online in 2001.

Incorporate.com: Incorporate.com opened in 1899, and they’ve served 750,000+ clients since then. Over the years, their name has changed several times ― from Corporation Service Company to The Company Corporation to Incorporate.com ― but the core business has stayed the same.

Customer Support

LegalZoom: LegalZoom offers phone and email support. We reached out twice via the email form on their site, but it took them a full week to respond. The response we received was generic, thanking us for reaching out but not answering our question.

When we contacted them via phone, our question was answered thoroughly. The representative went into detail about our different options and then sent us an email with their direct extension so that we could reach out directly with questions. Overall, while their customer service via phone is good, their online support could be improved.

Incorporate.com: They provide support by phone, email, or chat. We tried all three options and had similar experiences with all of them. Incorporate.com’s representatives responded in a relatively efficient manner and accurately answered our questions. We couldn’t find any info about their hours of operation, however.

Turnaround Times

LegalZoom: Their turnarounds are based on which package you order rather than which state you’re forming in. With their most expensive package, you could receive your finalized business formation documents in 7-10 business days, but their cheaper packages take as long as 30 business days (six weeks).

Incorporate.com: When you reach the bottom of your order form, Incorporate.com gives you turnaround time estimates for both standard and expedited processing. Incorporate.com bases its turnaround times on each state’s processing speeds.

Customer Reviews

LegalZoom: We found 6,000+ reviews for LegalZoom, and while they do have some negative reviews mixed in, a majority of this feedback is positive. Their satisfied customers often talk about how convenient and easy it is to use LegalZoom’s services.

Incorporate.com: Despite being in business since the 19th century and boasting nearly a million customers, there is little customer feedback available online for Incorporate.com. We found just a small handful of reviews on third-party review sites, and a large percentage of them were negative.

Ease of Use

LegalZoom: First, you’ll pick your business entity type (LLC, corporation, nonprofit) and which of LegalZoom’s three packages you’d like to purchase. From there, you fill out your business information and payment details over a series of screens that also include upsells for registered agent service, an operating agreement, an EIN, a license research package, ongoing compliance assistance, a tax consultation, ongoing legal guidance, standard or complex tax returns, a legal protection plan, two options for business bank accounts, expedited processing, and an LLC kit and seal.

Incorporate.com: The ordering process is pretty simple with Incorporate.com. After you select your state and entity, you’ll choose from Incorporate.com’s three LLC formation packages. Then, depending on which package you selected, you’ll see a screen with a few upsell attempts. From there, you just need to fill out your personal contact info and business details, then you can review your information and pay for the order.

Additional Services

With either LegalZoom or Incorporate.com, you can access quite a few additional business services, and these two companies offer many of the same services as well. For example, you can purchase registered agent service, annual reports, business licensing packages, operating agreements, EIN acquisition, doing business as (DBA) names, and more from either one of them.

However, only Incorporate.com offers mail forwarding, and only LegalZoom offers assistance with trademarks and patents. In addition, LegalZoom provides its customers with a variety of personal services, like last will and testament, divorce forms, and power of attorney documents.

Which is the better service to form an LLC?

Incorporate.com and LegalZoom are both capable and trustworthy companies with quality LLC formation services. We understand some of you still might be undecided, so to close, let’s discuss situations where you may prefer one over the other (or one of their top competitors).

➥ Choose LegalZoom if:

If you’re looking for brand power and want to save money, LegalZoom could be a good pick for LLC formation services. Additionally, LegalZoom has solid customer feedback.

➦ Choose Incorporate.com if:

If you prefer to use companies that have been around for a long time, they’ve been in business since the 19th century. Overall, Incorporate.com is a decent LegalZoom alternative.

🎉 Choose ZenBusiness if:

If you’d like to form your LLC with ZenBusiness, we’re here to help. We offer LLC formations starting at $0 (+ state fee), and we also have 12,000+ positive customer reviews. Form your LLC quickly and get more tools to start your dream business.

Starts at $0 + state fees and only takes 5-10 minutes