Every LLC needs one, whether you're forming a new company or just replacing your current provider. We compared price, privacy, mail-scanning speed, and renewal pricing across the services people actually ask about.
A registered agent is a person or company designated to receive legal documents, state correspondence, and service of process on behalf of your LLC. Every single state requires one — it's not optional, and it's not something you can skip regardless of which formation service (or none at all) you used to file. The agent needs a physical street address in your state of formation, has to be available during standard business hours, and is responsible for forwarding anything that arrives promptly.
You can technically act as your own registered agent for free in most states. The tradeoff is that your home or business address becomes part of the public record, you have to be reachable at that address during business hours every single day, and if you're ever served with a lawsuit, it can happen in front of customers, employees, or family. That's exactly the gap commercial registered agent services fill — and it's why most business owners, even ones comfortable with paperwork, end up paying for one.
Every service is scored against the same four weighted factors — so a bundled add-on plan and a standalone specialist get compared on equal footing.
Year-one cost, and — more importantly — whether that price holds steady or jumps at renewal.
Whether the service's address (not yours) appears on public state filings, and in how many states.
How quickly scanned documents hit your inbox, and whether same-day scanning is standard or a paid upgrade.
Real phone/chat support vs. ticket queues, and how easy it is to reach someone during a compliance deadline.
The right pick depends on whether you're forming a new LLC, replacing an existing agent, or managing agent service across multiple states.
| Service | Best if you want… | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Northwest | A flat renewal price that never increases, plus real, in-house support | Not the lowest sticker price in year one |
| ZenBusiness | Bundling registered agent with an existing ZenBusiness formation or compliance plan | Registered agent isn't included on the starter tier |
| Registered Agents Inc | A specialist that only does registered agent work, in all 50 states | Fewer bundled extras than a full formation service |
We looked at standalone registered agent pricing (not bundled formation pricing) across every major provider. These three came out ahead.
A staffed physical address in every state, same-day mail scanning, and a renewal price that's locked at signup instead of quietly climbing every year. Best fit if you want to set it and not think about it again.
Scores reflect our own weighted methodology (see above) — not a third-party or user-submitted rating.
Being your own registered agent is legal in nearly every state and costs nothing. It's a reasonable choice if you run your business from a fixed commercial address, don't mind that address being public, and can guarantee someone is there during business hours every single weekday, indefinitely — including if you travel, move, or scale beyond a single location.
For home-based businesses, that last requirement is usually the dealbreaker: your home address becomes searchable public record, and a missed delivery (a lawsuit notice, a compliance letter) can mean a default judgment or an administrative dissolution you never even saw coming. A commercial registered agent service exists specifically to remove that single point of failure for around $100–$250 a year.
Already have an LLC and just need a registered agent? Northwest's standalone plan is $125/yr, flat, with same-day scanning included.
Compare Plans →"Switched from a $99/yr provider that jumped to $189 on renewal with zero warning. Northwest's price has stayed exactly the same for three years now."
"Was my own registered agent for a year and got served papers at my kid's birthday party. Never again — worth every dollar of the annual fee."
"I manage LLCs in four states and needed one agent that covers all of them consistently. Registered Agents Inc handled the multi-state setup cleanly."