Owning a business can be rewarding, but before you embark on that endeavor, you must attend to many details - including picking out the best registered agent service. With so many services competing for your dollars, you might have a hard time deciding. We’ve done some research to help you out.
1. ZenBusiness
EXCELLENT
GOOD
EXCELLENT
- Great customer support
- Worry-free guarantee
- No hidden fees
2. Business Anywhere
EXCELLENT
GOOD
GOOD
- Effortless registration process
- Digital dashboard
- No hidden fees
3. Incfile
EXCELLENT
GOOD
GOOD
- Free business formation
- Email and SMS notifications
- Digital dashboard
4. Northwest Registered Agent
GOOD
GOOD
EXCELLENT
- Pre-filled state forms
- Same-day document scans
- Free resources
5. Rocket Lawyer
AVERAGE
EXCELLENT
GOOD
- Access to licensed attorneys
- Free legal documents
- Premium subscription discounts
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Key Facts About Registered Agents
Before you choose a registered agent, you should know exactly what you’re signing up for. Considering everything that you must do to start a business, it’s easy to understand why this task might end up at the bottom of the priorities list. However, the choice is more important than you might think. That’s why we’ve prepared a short guide to registered agent services.
What Is a Registered Agent?
A registered agent is sometimes called a statutory agent or agent of process. It is a person or entity that is authorized to accept tax correspondence and legal documents on behalf of your business. The agent must be located in the state where your business was founded.
Do I Need a Registered Agent?
Whether you appoint a registered agent or not is not a matter of preference. You are obligated by law to name a registered agent for your company. This applies to every business entity registered in every US state.
Failing to have a professional registered agent can have serious repercussions. You’ll be unable to incorporate your business. You’ll lose your right to due process and certificate of good standing. You may be fined. You could face increased personal liability for business lawsuits. And you could lose your business entirely.
The bar for “professional” is pretty low, however. A professional registered agent must have a physical business address within the state and must be available at that address to accept official mail during normal business hours.
Who Can Be a Registered Agent?
In most states, the rules for registered agents are the same. A registered against can be a person who is at least 18 or a registered agent company. Corporations and LLCs can’t act as their own agents, but the role can usually be assigned to one of the company’s owners or employees. The physical address of your agent’s workplace must be in the state in which your business was established.
How Much Does a Registered Agent Cost?
If our warnings have convinced you that it’s a good idea to hire a registered agent, you are now most likely interested in knowing how much the service will cost you. After all, managing finances properly and controlling costs are important factors when running a small business, especially a startup.
Our research reveals that registered agent service providers typically charge $100 to $300 per year. That’s less than $10 to a high of $25 per month – an affordable price for a necessary service.
How We Evaluate Registered Agents
When you set up a business you want everything to be just right. It’s your company, so you want to dot all the i’s and cross all the t’s. Selecting a company that provides good registered agent services is a critical step in this process. You certainly don’t want someone incompetent handling your legal papers. Before we reveal our top picks, let’s take a quick walk through our evaluation criteria.
Reputation
To identify the very best registered agent companies, we start by checking out their reputations. We look at the company’s history along with awards, customer reviews, and Better Business Bureau ratings. The sum of these factors is a relatively clear picture of how seriously these companies take their responsibilities and the effort they put into meeting them.
Availability
Once we have established a company’s trustworthiness, we move on to availability. This is of paramount importance. There’s no benefit in finding the perfect service, only to find that it does not maintain a presence in the state where your company was founded. For that reason, only the best registered agent service providers that offer agents nationwide earned a place on our list.
Price
Most of the companies on our list provide LLC and corporation formation support in addition to registered agent services. Some let you purchase the registered agent’s services separately.
If you haven’t set up your business yet, you should look into a company registration service to handle the paperwork and make sure you’re paying the right fees to the right offices. They can handle the whole ordeal at a fair price. The à la carte services are best for those who already have a business up and running or wish to file registration paperwork themselves, and therefore need nothing but a corporate or LLC registered agent.
Additional Features
You should always try to get the most bang for your buck. That’s why we thoroughly evaluated everything these companies’ registered agents do for you. We made sure to check the quality of all their extra services, as you never know when you might need some legal advice or business-management assistance.
Customer Care
Any reputable company that wants to retain its client base will pay special attention to how it treats customers. And as a business owner, you’re bound to have a question or two about the professional registered agent services you have contracted for. We evaluate the speed and expertise of the support teams at registered agent companies and document the ways in which they can be contacted.
5 Best Registered Agent Services in 2022
- ZenBusiness
- Incfile
- Northwest Registered Agent
- Rocket Lawyer

Registered Agent Service Providers - Reviews
ZenBusiness
EXCELLENT
GOOD
EXCELLENT
- ⦿ Sleek website
- ⦿ Affordable prices
- ⦿ Numerous positive reviews
Business Anywhere Review
EXCELLENT
GOOD
GOOD
- ⦿ Notifications about approaching deadlines
- ⦿ Everything is handled remotely
- ⦿ The company takes care of all the paperwork
Incfile Review
EXCELLENT
GOOD
GOOD
- ⦿ Award-winning company
- ⦿ Many free services
- ⦿ Good customer feedback
Northwest Registered Agent Review
AVERAGE
EXCELLENT
EXCELLENT
- ⦿ Plenty of experience
- ⦿ Specializes in registered agent services
- ⦿ Personal customer support representative
Rocket Lawyer Review
AVERAGE
EXCELLENT
GOOD
- ⦿ 100% money-back guarantee
- ⦿ 7-day trial
- ⦿ Abundant legal resources
Yes, hiring a service to take care of legally mandated registered agent obligations is worth it. You’ll have more time to run your business if you’re not the one who is tasked with receiving and signing for your company’s registered mail. Any top registered agent service will give you the peace of mind that comes with knowing that you can count on important official communications being received and transmitted to you properly.
Any individual who’s 18 or older can be your registered agent, but you should consider hiring a company that provides these services professionally. There are plenty of top registered agent services to choose from, and none will cost you an arm and a leg. Assigning the role to your nephew might be tempting but it’s always better to employ someone who knows exactly what they’re doing in an important position like this. Taking on the responsibility yourself would limit you in terms of managing your time and movements freely, since you’d always have this responsibility to be in the office during business hours.
Your company’s registered agent is there to assure the state that you can receive and sign important documents. Because a signature is needed to prove receipt, a post office box is not enough. Registered agents also keep track of official notices and due dates for reports to the government. The best registered agent services have infallible systems in place that assist them in notifying you about relevant information and deadlines. This is crucial for keeping your business in compliance with corporate legal requirements.
It’s completely legal to appoint yourself as your own registered agent. Furthermore, most states allow you to appoint your business to be its own registered agent. However, there are several reasons to find a registered agent instead of appointing yourself. First, there’s a high chance you won’t have enough time to always stay on top of all important correspondence and crucial government notifications. Second, if you list your business as a registered agent, and you’re working from home, your private address will become publicly known. Lastly, business owners without a physical address or those that work in multiple states will have a hard time complying with state regulations without hiring a professional service.
One of the companies that we consider a strong candidate to be the best registered agent service is ZenBusiness. This is because it has reasonably priced plans and superb customer care representatives.