Forming a limited liability company could be a time-consuming and strenuous process, especially for newcomers. And if you think starting an LLC by yourself can save you quite a bit of money, you’d be correct, but the DIY method is not for everyone.
Another popular option for company formation is to hire a business attorney but their expertise is also the reason for such steep rates. A good alternative to this is hiring a professional LLC service that would also provide registered agent service and other essential formation features.
This Rocket Lawyer vs BizFilings comparison guide is meant to provide a step-by-step comparison of both services to hopefully help you decide which is the best service to open an LLC in your particular case.
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Quite a few companies claim to be the best at professionally forming new LLCs, but it’s neither here nor there. In truth, most current top LLC formation service providers are equally capable and the final decision is contingent on your company’s individual needs.
Both BizFilings and Rocket Lawyer can help you form an LLC more efficiently than you would’ve done on your own, and only at a fraction of what you’d be charged by qualified business attorneys.
If you tend to rely on online customer reviews to make a more informed choice, Rocket Lawyer would suit you best as the more established of the two in terms of their online presence.
Rocket Lawyer’s excellent customer feedback is often cited as proof of reliability and strong client support. It may not be the only or best LLC service to start a company overall, but it seems to be a more appealing choice out of these two.
Unfortunately, BizFilings is severely lacking in this aspect, with only five reviews available online. Still, their personal and legal services as well as other business solutions make them a worthy contender.
Whether you choose BizFilings or Rocket Lawyer, you are guaranteed to save quite a significant sum on the overall formation process. Hiring an online LLC formation service is your best bet at keeping the registration cost fairly low outside of the DIY method. Plus with some of the best services, LLC formation can be as affordable as doing it yourself. BizFilings and Rocket Lawyer offer a range of plans any of which can reduce overall costs to open an LLC compared to average attorney rates.
Saving money is all well in good, but it doesn’t always guarantee good service or customer satisfaction. And high-quality customer support is perhaps the most valuable feature when you operate an LLC without prior experience. Along with Rocket Lawyer and BizFilings packages, you will also be getting their customer support networks subscription for as long as you choose their services. Both
Many entrepreneurs choose industry experience over general exposure or customer feedback, but luckily Rocket Lawyer and BizFilings have years of experience in the field. Both helped form thousands of operating businesses, obtained foreign qualifications for LLCs around the country, and provided other solutions.
Although formation time can vary greatly depending on the state of the LLC company registration, it’s perfectly possible to speed up your processing times if you’re ready to pay extra. Rocket Lawyer and BizFilings can help start new businesses faster thanks to their expedited options. Much like with other professional services, LLC formation time with these two companies can be reduced to only a few days.
It’s not uncommon for LLC formation services to have virtually no refund policy due to general state regulations, but with either Rocket Lawyer or BizFilings, you can expect to get at least some of your money back. BizFilings has been known to reimburse your formation costs minus the state filing fee charged for filing documents, while Rocket Lawyer boasts a 100% money-back guarantee policy that involves reimbursing whatever you spent on opening an LLC with them.
With both companies, you will find other online business services available, though the extensiveness depends on the package. Either option offers vital features required to conduct business in the US, including EIN acquisition, drafting LLC operating agreements, financial solutions, foreign qualifications, LLC registered agent service, and more.
Creating an LLC will cost you roughly the same with either of these options. At a base level, the two hit the same price points for LLC formations: both Rocket Lawyer and BizFilings service providers set their starter LLC cost at $99, albeit with slightly different feature sets.
BizFilings offers three LLC formation packages: Basic ($99 + state fee), Standard ($229 + state fees), and Complete (fees calculated based on your location).
Rocket Lawyer, on the other hand, has two options: premium member subscription and non-member purchases. For non-members, the formation charge is $99, plus most features are paid for separately.
Members will pay $39.99 monthly and get access to premium services, all additional features included. This covers registered agent service discounts and legal services subscription.
As already mentioned, the two companies cover the absolute basics of formation, so technically you will be able to start an LLC with either option. That being said, Rocket Lawyer’s approach means that non-members won’t have access to some of the additional features.
For instance, both companies offer the preparation and filing of articles of organization with their basic plans, but all other related services like operating agreement templates are not available with Rocket Lawyer if you’re not a premium member.
BizFilings, on the other hand, throw in a few extra features with their $229 standard plan like customizable LLC forms or name availability search, and even their basic plan includes six months of registered agent service for free.
Compare that to Rocket Lawyer’s $149.99 registered agent service for non-members, and the weights shift in BizFiling’s favor once more.
Additionally, BizFilings offers six months of their online compliance management tool in their Complete package. On the other hand, Rocket Lawyer’s membership includes extensive legal service supported by their licensed attorneys, whereas BizFilings don’t have attorneys on hand.
When comparing the experience of Rocket Lawyer vs BizFilings, one shouldn’t pass judgment based strictly on the years each company spent in the business.
Rocket Lawyer is a more recent addition, having formed in 2008, but they have worked with more than 20 million customers in a little over a decade. Their company stats point to mostly positive client experiences as well despite not being the largest company.
BizFilings officially registered in 1994 and expanded in 2001, so that gives them over 27 years of experience. You can make an LLC with them just as well but their LLC business clients are not as numerous.
Both LLC service providers hold fairly decent customer service reputations. When you form an LLC with either, you automatically gain access to their support center.
Rocket Lawyer’s reps can be reached via phone, email, or online chat from Monday to Friday between 6 am and 6 pm PST. Their representatives offer highly professional service across the board.
BizFilings offer extended operating hours, and you can reach their technical support from Monday to Friday between 8 am and 7 pm CT. Plus you can browse their informative support center for additional help.
Regardless of the service provider, your turnaround time will primarily depend on your state’s processing speed but both companies include expedited processing options.
In the case of BizFilings, it depends on the type of your LLC formation package: normal 4-6 week processing for Basic package orders and 7-10 business day processing for Standard + Complete packages. Keep in mind that it comes with an extra $60 charge for every expedited order on top of the state fee.
This is another aspect where both companies are evenly matched. With both, you can check the order status on their websites. Your LLC formation status will be available in your personal account info. They also send notifications once they officially launch an LLC.
All business entities are required to designate a registered agent to legally operate in the state of their registration.
This step is mandatory for a reason: the state needs to be able to contact your company at any time and send important documents like legal agreements or service of process.
Both of these business services have this feature but only BizFilings provides their agent for LLC free of charge. This offer is valid for six months, after which you will be charged $199 annually.
Rocket Lawyer sets their LLC registered agent cost at $149.99 right off the bat, but premium members can get 25% off along with their monthly subscription.
Rocket Lawyer and BizFilings could not be less alike when it comes to feedback volume. Rocket Lawyer shows truly impressive review numbers, the majority of which is positive feedback.
At the time of writing, Rocket Lawyer has than 3,000 reviews available online across multiple review platforms: 3,303 reviews and 4.6/5 star rating on TrustPilot, 409 reviews and 5/5 star rating on Consumer Affairs, and 1,312 reviews and 4.5/5 star rating on Site Jabber.
By contrast, BizFilings have almost no customer feedback online. Despite having quite a substantial customer base, the lack of client feedback is truly staggering. Currently, they have five reviews in total, three of which awarded the company only one star.
While both companies have excellent websites, it’s worth mentioning that BizFilings can at times be fairly confusing to navigate. If you want to find more about any available additional service, it might take some serious effort to locate the information.
Rocket Lawyer, on the other hand, is more user-friendly and keeps its features neatly organized. Here you can easily manage all of the LLC forms, learn more about their services, and sign up for their digital signature feature that helps you draft and approve legal documentation remotely.
Even though Rocket Lawyer and BizFilings both provide basic formation features and a few common additional LLC business services, they also both occupy quite a specific niche in their field.
For Rocket Lawyer, it’s offering online and phone consultations for legal matters. This includes drafting or approving legal documentation, providing attorney services like attorney consultations, document defense, and more.
BizFilings may not have a qualified attorney service but they offer more comprehensive business solutions like tax registrations, business licensing, financial and accounting solutions, entity conversions, DBA filings, and much more.
At the end of the day, either option is competent enough to help you create an LLC. When viewed separately, both are top-notch LLC formation services with plenty of helpful features that could help entrepreneurs in certain segments.
But the goal of this comparison guide was to highlight the Rocket Lawyer and BizFilings pros and cons as well as their relative compatibility with your business entity.
If you are reliant on positive customer feedback, Rocket Lawyer would be the better option for you. They don’t deal with standard formation packages, but their subscription plan covers a wide range of services, mostly legal in nature. You can still buy an LLC registration plan separately if you don’t want a membership subscription.
If you value experience above all else, BizFilings is hard to really rival. With over 25 years in business and more than acceptable pricing, they are able to provide a significant advantage for LLC formations, incorporations, and industry-specific business solutions.
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