LegalZoom advertises $0 formation. Northwest starts at $39. Before you assume that makes Northwest the worse deal — the $39 already includes a full year of registered agent service, something LegalZoom bills separately and increases later. Here's the full picture, not just the sticker price.
Choose Northwest if: you want your registered agent bundled into the formation price rather than billed separately, you want that agent price to stay flat instead of increasing after an intro period, or you'd rather not navigate a checkout flow with several upsell prompts. This covers the majority of people forming a straightforward single-member or small-team LLC who plan to keep it active for more than a year.
Choose LegalZoom if: you specifically want access to their broader legal services — trademark filing, estate planning documents, or their attorney consultation network — bundled with your formation, and you're comfortable managing your registered agent as a separate line item. Their $0 entry price is also genuinely the cheaper option for a one-time formation with no ongoing agent need.
| Factor | Northwest | LegalZoom |
|---|---|---|
| Starting Price | $39 + state fee | $0 + state fee |
| Registered Agent (Year 1) | Included free | Separate add-on, ~$249/yr |
| Registered Agent Renewal | $125/yr, locked at signup | Increases after intro period |
| Operating Agreement | Included | Often an upsell |
| EIN Filing | Available, itemized | Available, itemized |
| Compliance Reminders | Included, automated | Included on paid plans |
| States Covered | All 50 | All 50 |
| Domain + Business Email | Included free | Not included |
| Additional Legal Services | LLC/corp formation focus | Trademarks, wills, attorney network |
| Checkout Upsell Flow | Minimal | Multiple add-on prompts |
| Support Model | Direct phone/chat, no sales push | Support plus upgrade prompts |
| Brand Recognition | Strong within the industry | Broadly recognized nationally |
LegalZoom launched in 2001 and grew into one of the most recognizable names in online legal services, eventually expanding well beyond LLC formation into trademarks, estate planning, and a network of independent attorneys available for consultations — its scale and marketing reach are a big part of why it's often the first name people recognize when researching how to form a business.
Northwest Registered Agent, founded in 1998 in Spokane, Washington, took a narrower and more specialized path — focusing specifically on formation and registered agent service, and building its reputation within the industry around privacy protection and a no-upsell checkout experience rather than broad brand marketing. Neither approach is inherently better; they're built for different priorities, which is exactly why the full comparison above matters more than which name you've heard of first.
For a closer look, read our full Northwest Registered Agent review.
LegalZoom's $0 formation price is real, but it's structured as an entry point into a checkout flow that offers registered agent service, an operating agreement, expedited filing, and compliance alerts as separate paid add-ons — and its registered agent pricing has been known to increase after an introductory first-term rate. Northwest's $39 starting price looks higher on paper, but it already includes the registered agent for year one, at a rate that doesn't increase on renewal.
For a one-time formation with no ongoing registered agent need, LegalZoom's base price can genuinely be cheaper. For the much more common case — an LLC that stays active for years and needs a registered agent the whole time — Northwest's bundled, flat-rate structure tends to win out over a 2–3 year horizon.
"Started with LegalZoom's free filing, then got hit with the registered agent renewal price jump the second year. Switched to Northwest after that."
"LegalZoom's attorney network was actually useful for a trademark question I had. Used Northwest for the LLC itself though."
"Didn't realize how many upsells were in the checkout flow until I compared it side by side with Northwest's much shorter one."