Taxes Made Simple

If you've decided that an LLC is the way to go with your business, you've got three primary options for how to go about forming one:

1. Use an attorney
2. Use an online service
3. Do it yourself (hopefully with the help of a book or 2)

Using an Attorney

A reasonable option, but almost certain to be the most expensive. Honestly, in my opinion, the most important thing an attorney can help with is determining if an LLC is right for you. If you're already past that point, I'm not sure I'd bother.

Also, I've had multiple lawyers tell me that--when asked to form an LLC--they simply take down all the necessary information, then submit it to one of the online services anyway. Might as well cut out the middleman and save some cash.

Online LLC Formation Services

The two biggest names in the industry are Legal Zoom and My Corporation.

As to my experiences with them:

• I used Legal Zoom to form my own LLC, and was quite happy with the service. Everything went smoothly.
• I haven't used My Corporation to form an LLC, but I did use them once for a D/B/A filing. The process didn't go nearly as smoothly as with Legal Zoom. That said, I do know several people who've been happy with MyCorporation's services.

Last I checked, their fees for LLC formation were very comparable (within $10 of each other).

Do it Yourself

Definitely more work than the other options, but not impossible. I'd suggest finding some resources to walk you through the process. Nolo's Form Your Own Limited Liability Company comes highly recommended from other business owners.

Get Started

Click here to learn more about My Corporation's LLC formation services.