Updated October 29, 2026
ZenBusiness comes out ahead overall, thanks to its dashboard, a first-login account check from Velo AI and a checkout that never buries the total.
By Jon Morgan · Fact-checked by Jon Tobin, Business Attorney · How we test
ZenBusiness
$0 + state feeSee ZenBusiness plans (opens in a new tab)
Bizee
$0 + state feeSee Bizee plans (opens in a new tab)Our overall pick for a first LLC is Northwest Registered Agent: $39 + state fee, with the first year of registered agent service included (then $125/yr). Form my LLC for $39 (opens in a new tab)
Prices checked October 29, 2026. State filing fees are extra.
Bizee's one clear win is that registered agent costs nothing in year one.
Kentucky's Road Logistics LLC went through Bizee's checkout on June 6 for $40, all state fee. Montana's Meridian Retail LLC followed with ZenBusiness the next day for $35, again just what the state charged.
Neither company charges anything for the base formation itself. The state fee is the only line item on day one. What separates them shows up afterward, in the level of hand-holding and in what a registered agent costs once the free window closes.
ZenBusiness keeps its order flow short, with support reachable by phone, chat and email at every step. Bizee, formerly Incfile, runs a longer ten-screen checkout, then backs it with a dashboard full of partner tools once you're in.
Price, filing speed and registered agent renewal cost sit side by side in the table below. These are the numbers most readers weigh before deciding.
| Feature |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| Venture Smarter rating | ★★★★½ | ★★★★ |
| LLC formation plans | Starter $0 / Pro $199/yr / Premium $299/yr | Basic $0 / Standard $199 / Premium $299 (one-time) |
| Registered agent, year 1 | $199/year (not in any plan) | Free (included) |
| Registered agent, year 2+ | $199/year | $149/year |
| Year 1 total with agent | State fee + $199 | State fee only |
| EIN | Pro and up | Standard and up |
| Operating agreement | Pro and up | Standard and up |
| Filing speed | 7-10 business days (1 on Pro/Premium) | Next business day submission, 3 weeks standard (KY) |
| Money-back guarantee | 60 days on any plan | Not prominently offered |
ZenBusiness offers Starter free of charge beyond the state fee, though its own review runs 7 to 10 business days before your state even begins processing.
Pro steps that up to $199 a year. The extra buys next-day internal handling, Worry-Free Compliance at no charge through year one, a logo builder, an EIN and an operating agreement.
Even Premium, at $299 a year, leaves registered agent out of the price.
A 30-day website trial rides along with every ZenBusiness tier. Skip canceling it, and the domain, email and site bundle starts billing $15 monthly.
Bizee's own Basic tier matches that $0 starting point and throws in a full free year of registered agent along with domain and email at no extra charge.
Moving to Standard costs a one-time $199 and picks up an EIN and an operating agreement. Premium, a one-time $299, bundles the state's expedited filing option plus S-Corp election, both extra-cost add-ons on the lower tiers.
Bundle EIN, operating agreement, a banking resolution and Bizee's contract library together for $99, which undercuts buying the EIN and operating agreement on their own.
Nothing about the two flows feels alike. ZenBusiness leaves the running total on screen at all times, gives every step a back option and skips the pre-checked upsell trick entirely.
Ten screens sit between starting a Bizee order and reaching checkout: the first five cover filing speed, a virtual mailing address, the $99 bundle, registered agent and a standalone EIN offer.
The remaining five add a free banking referral, document delivery, a no-cost tax call, license research and one last review before you pay.
That last review screen earns credit for showing every charge with its own edit link before you commit. Still, ten stops is ten stops, well past what ZenBusiness asks of you.
Log into ZenBusiness for the first time and Velo has already been busy, scanning your account before you've clicked a single tab.
It confirmed the website package was already active, then flagged a missing EIN and an unpurchased Worry-Free Compliance plan. All of that ran before we touched anything.
Bizee takes a different approach, wiring in outside partners: Fiverr for freelance work, a six-month Xero trial, Relay for banking access.
Each of those sits outside Bizee's own product line. Even the perks Bizee owns outright, like the website, domain and email, sit marked "Unclaimed" until a reader clicks to activate them.
Five contract templates round out Bizee's dashboard, including an operating agreement and a non-compete. The company flags all of them for attorney review before real use.
Bizee has the clear edge here. Its registered agent costs nothing for a full twelve months, then settles at $149 first year, then $149/yr.
Pick any ZenBusiness plan and that same service runs $199 in the first year, then $199/yr. No plan, Premium included, folds it in.
Buying either company's service is optional. State law only requires naming a registered agent, and an owner can fill that job personally at no cost.
Republic Registered Agent LLC actually staffs Bizee's service. That detail surfaces in your order paperwork rather than on the signup screen, so it's worth knowing before you sign. ZenBusiness, on the plans that include it, handles that job in-house.
Internally, ZenBusiness needs 7 to 10 business days on Starter before your state's own timeline starts. That drops to a single business day on Pro or Premium, and $79 buys that same speed on Starter.
Bizee sends your paperwork to the state by the next business day no matter which plan you bought. After that, the state's own clock takes over, and our Kentucky filing took three weeks. A $50 upgrade compresses that window.
A 60-day refund window backs every ZenBusiness order, paired with phone, chat and email access. Bizee answers phones weekdays, 9am to 6pm CST, and doesn't reach out first once your order is in.
That gap is most visible inside the account itself. Velo greets you with answers already prepared, while Bizee's own tracking tools sit waiting for you to open them.
ZenBusiness
Pros
Cons
Bizee
Pros
Cons
For a broader look at the field, our best LLC services guide covers the wider comparison.
Affordability between ZenBusiness and Bizee depends on the tier: formation itself is free on both, and Bizee's registered agent stays free through year one where ZenBusiness bills $199 right away, though ZenBusiness Pro at that same $199 bundles in enough extras to beat piecing those add-ons together on Bizee.
Bizee's free registered agent stays free for just the first twelve months. Afterward it renews at $149 a year, still under ZenBusiness's $199 on every ZenBusiness plan, Premium included.
Velo AI is an assistant built into ZenBusiness that starts working the moment you log in, checking your account status and surfacing what still needs attention without you asking first.
Bizee's checkout has ten screens between signup and payment: filing speed, a mailing address upsell, the bundle, registered agent, a solo EIN offer, banking, delivery choice, a free tax call, license research, then the final summary.
Choosing between these two comes down to guidance versus upfront savings, and ZenBusiness gets the nod here. Its Starter plan was $0 plus the state fee, so our Montana order came to $35.
Checkout showed a 60-day money-back guarantee, and on first login Velo AI checked our formation status, EIN and compliance. Bizee remains the right call if you want a $0 package with the registered agent's first year included.
Beyond these two, our overall pick for a first LLC is Northwest Registered Agent. A full year of registered agent service is included, then it costs $125 a year from year two.
Your home address stays off the public filing (Privacy by Default), and a basic operating agreement is included.
Domain, website, business email and phone line come at no charge while the agent service is active. We formed a real LLC with Northwest in June 2026 for $289 all in ($39 plus Alaska's $250 state fee). Forming yours costs $39 plus the state fee.
Our verdict
$39 + state fee with the first year of registered agent service (then $125/yr) and business identity tools included. 90-day money-back guarantee.
Prices checked October 29, 2026. State filing fees are extra.