While many beginner entrepreneurs start their business journey with sole proprietorships, at some point, incorporated business forms become more appropriate and more beneficial both for companies and for their owners, hence the recent popularity of the limited liability structure for the smaller businesses. And if you are going to start an LLC with an online LLC formation service, it’s an optimal choice. The cost of hiring an LLC service is much lower than that of hiring an attorney while you’ll still get professional assistance and will avoid getting into formation formalities. If you look for the best LLC formation service, our article will help you make up your mind since here, we compare Incorporate.com and Incfile, each of them having quite a few aces down their sleeves.
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Casting a quick look, both Incorporate.com and Incfile have a lot going for them. Each of these online LLC services has enough experience, boasts a high level of professionalism, and comes up with a number of service options to match varying business needs and not only to open a limited liability company but also to maintain it after formation. Both services operate nationwide and can file an LLC and provide a registered agent in any state.
What makes Incorporate.com stand out straight away is its amazing longevity. The company has stood at the origins of the whole business formation industry and has been present on the market for over 120 years. So, the expertise and accumulated knowledge of Incorporate.com are really hard to beat. Incfile, on the other hand, is a relatively new service as compared to its rival, with only 17 years of experience behind its back. However, despite its age, the company is already a well-known and reputed brand, especially among startuppers and first-time entrepreneurs. The main distinctive feature of the Incfile service is a free formation package. When we say free, we mean it. The only payment you’ll have to make in this case is a state fee, which is compulsory anyway.
By and large, these two incorporation services are quite different in many aspects, each of them having its own pros and cons. However, in a broader sense, they still have similarities and stand strong in many key features customers take into account when choosing an LLC service to accomplish the business formation process for them.
Similar to other incorporation services, Incfile and Incorporate.com have their strengths and weaknesses. Yet, to figure out the benefits each service offers and reveal their drawbacks, let’s see how they match under detailed comparison.
The first aspect entrepreneurs consider when selecting an LLC service and comparing service providers is LLC pricing. This is the area where Incfile and Incorporate.com differ a lot. Though both companies apply the LLC package system, their pricing approach is not the same.
Incfile has three formation packages in place, yet, what gives them an indisputable advantage over nearly any other LLC service is that their cheapest formation package costs $0, which means you’ll have to pay nothing but a state fee. And what you’ll get for that price is even more impressive. At $0, the Silver package covers basic LLC registration, lifetime customer support, compliance alerts, a whole year of registered agent services, and even a primary tax consultation. Priced at $149, a Gold package is upgraded with an Operating Agreement, Employer Identification Number registration, banking resolution, and a business kit for a corporate style. A Platinum package, at $299, is further extended with a bundle of essential legal templates, website development services, and rush filing speed.
Incorporate.com also comes up with three LLC packages, yet all of them are payable, with prices starting at $79. At this price point, a “Starter” package includes basic LLC filing only, with some company-specific extras available under a certain condition. Thus, subject to ordering the registered agent service (at $235 per year), you’ll also get access to the branded $75000 Corporate Compliance Guarantee meant to protect you from any financial risks that might arise due to formation mistakes made by Incorporate.com. In addition, you’ll be able to make use of the CSCNavigator tool to access secure document storage and keep up with crucial filing dates. The cost of the mid-tier “Essentials” bumps up to $249. What you’ll get above the “Starter” package is an EIN registration, a special corporate kit, and an annual reporting tool, which is again subject to ordering the registered agent service. A top-tier “Work” package priced at $399 upgrades the “Essentials” plan with an Operating Agreement and Business Licensing Kit.
Obviously enough, Incfile leaves Incorporate.com far behind when it comes to the pricing since even payable Incfile’s formation packages are lower in cost and contain more important features than those of Incorporate.com.
This is an aspect where Incfile truly shines. The company has got over 27,000 reviews online, which is no wonder, taking into account their offer of free LLC formation. Apart from that, customers highly appreciate a comprehensive and easy-to-navigate website and affordable pricing overall.
Incorporate.com, on the other, has only a few reviews, and all of them are on the negative side. Clients find their pricing approach a bit off-putting and find the price of the registered agent service critically high, not to mention the upsells they are not happy with. Thus, despite being in business for over a century, Incorporate.com is not even closely as popular as Incfile.
In this category, Incorporate.com and Incfile are a tie. When placing an order with Incorporate.com, you’ll be given estimated timeframes for both regular and expedited processing, so that you could choose a more suitable option for your business situation. Meanwhile, Incfile sticks to the state turnaround times, yet, the company ensures that your documents will be processed and filed with the state within a single day. Besides, they offer rush filing in the top-tier package. All in all, both formation companies will help you start an LLC online pretty fast.
As we’ve already stated, Incorporate.com has been in the LLC business for over 120 years, which is really impressive. Since they opened their doors to business clients back in 1899, they’ve served about 750,000 customers. Incfile, on the other hand, is much “younger”. However, established in 2004, the company has helped over 250,000 and is supported by extensive customer feedback while Incorporate.com has scarce customer reviews.
Any good LLC service is about reliable and efficient customer support. Both Incorporate.com and Incfile stand strong in this aspect. The companies provide assistance to their customers via phone, live chat, and email. Their help reps are responsive and give informative answers to any type of business-related questions you might have. Both support centers have extended working hours, yet Incorporate.com has an advantage here since their client service is available from 8 am to 8 pm on weekdays and from 9 am to 6 pm on weekends while Incfile’s customer support is only accessible on weekdays from 10 am to 7 pm.
It’s always nice to know where exactly you are in the formation process when setting up a new LLC. Incorporate.com and Incfile have convenient order tracking tools allowing you to check the status of your order from anywhere, whenever you need.
Which LLC provider is the best choice for you to register an LLC? The answer largely depends on your expectations and your individual business scenario. While both companies are experienced and professional enough to register an LLC diligently and fast, Incfile $0 formation package is really hard to beat. Incfile is by far the cheapest LLC service that offers a feature-rich service bundle at no cost at all. By paying only a regular state fee, you’ll even get a whole year of registered agent service for free. So, Incfile is a provider you can never go wrong with which is proven by multiple positive customer reviews.
The biggest selling point of Incorporate.com is its longevity and vast experience in the industry. More likely than not, the company specialists know the way out from nearly any business situation. So, this company might be a choice for some complex business scenarios or startup projects with no budget shortage.
