New York charges $200 to form an LLC and $9 every two years for the biennial statement. Within 120 days you must also publish a notice in two newspapers for six weeks and file a $50 certificate of publication. Newspaper costs vary by county.
Northwest charges $39 plus the state fee and includes a year of registered agent service, an operating agreement and a business address to keep your home address off public filings. After year one the agent is $125 a year. It has one package, so there are no tiers to compare.
$39 + state fee
Pros
$39 includes a year of registered agent, an operating agreement and a business address
Registered agent renews at a flat $125/yr
Cancel any service in the portal with no fee
Cons
EIN is a $50 add-on ($200 without an SSN)
Annual report filing is auto-enrolled at $100 + state fee unless you opt out
Lower Trustpilot score (4.1, 318 reviews) than the big brands
Bizee, formerly Incfile, files your LLC for $0 and includes a free first year of registered agent service, then $149 a year. The $0 Basic plan is slow (Bizee quotes 4 to 6 weeks in total), and refunds end once your fee goes to the state, usually within 24 hours.
$0 + state fee
Pros
$0 Basic includes a free first year of registered agent
Registered agent renews at $149/yr, below ZenBusiness and LegalZoom
4.8/5 on Trustpilot from 26,442 reviews
Cons
Basic takes about 4 to 6 weeks; Standard about 2 weeks
Refunds end once fees go to the state, usually within 24 hours
EIN ($70) and operating agreement ($99) cost extra on Basic
ZenBusiness has a $0 Starter plan, a 60-day money-back guarantee on formation and a 4.8 Trustpilot score from over 33,000 reviews. The catch is renewals: no package includes a registered agent ($199 a year), and Pro and Premium renew every year.
$0 + state fee
Pros
$0 Starter with a free first year of annual report filing
60-day money-back guarantee on formation plans
4.8/5 on Trustpilot from 33,239 reviews
Cons
No package includes a registered agent; it is $199/yr
Pro ($199) and Premium ($299) renew every year at the same price
Website builder trial is preselected at checkout and renews at $15/mo
Northwest keeps the service cost lowest, which leaves room in the budget for the newspaper bill. Its $39 package includes a business address, so your home address stays off public filings (Northwest LLC), and its agent is $125 a year after year one.
Bizee's Basic plan is $0 with a free first agent year, then $149 (Bizee agent). Basic quotes 4 to 6 weeks in total, while Standard at $199 quotes about 2 weeks (Bizee order form). Neither eats into the 120-day publication window, which starts at formation, but a slow filing delays everything else.
ZenBusiness costs the most, but Pro includes 1-day processing and Worry-Free Compliance (ZenBusiness LLC), and formation comes with a 60-day refund window (ZenBusiness terms). It suits you if you want deadlines tracked for you.
New York traps to avoid
The 120-day publication deadline is the big one. You must publish in two newspapers for six weeks and then file the $50 Certificate of Publication (NY Business Express). Start soon after formation, because six weeks of notices takes up about a third of the window.
Ask any service whether it handles publication, and at what price, before you pay. The totals above leave newspapers out.
Don't overpay for speed. The state's page says its expedite fees ($25 for 24 hours and up) apply to filings handled by the Division, and that no expedite fee applies to filings submitted online, so file online first (NY Business Express).