MyCompanyWorks is a solid mid-range LLC formation service, but it’s not the right fit for everyone. Maybe you want the absolute lowest year-one cost, maybe you’re a non-US founder who needs an EIN without a Social Security Number, or maybe you just want a bigger name behind your paperwork.
I’ve formed entities through most of the services on this list while running Ecommerce Paradise. I coach students through business formation for their high-ticket dropshipping stores every week, so here’s my honest breakdown of the ten best MyCompanyWorks alternatives and exactly who each one fits.
If you haven’t read it yet, my full MyCompanyWorks review covers what the service actually gets you. I also broke down every line item in my MyCompanyWorks pricing guide. This article is for when you’ve already decided to look elsewhere.
| Alternative | Starting Price | Registered Agent | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bizee | $0 + state fee | Free Year 1 | Lowest possible year-one cost |
| Northwest Registered Agent | $39 + state fee | Free Year 1, $125/yr after | Privacy and no upsell pressure |
| ZenBusiness | $0 + state fee | Included on Premium | Ongoing compliance dashboard |
| LegalZoom | $0 + state fee | Add-on | Brand recognition and add-on ecosystem |
| Swyft Filings | $50 + state fee | Add-on | Fast turnaround on a budget |
| LegalNature | $0 + state fee | $125/yr add-on | DIY legal documents beyond formation |
| Inc Authority | $0 + state fee | Free Year 1, $179/yr after | Free formation with a tax consultation |
| Tailor Brands | $0 + state fee | $199/yr add-on | Formation bundled with branding tools |
| Firstbase | $399 + state fee | Included Year 1 | Non-US founders who want a full back office |
| Doola | $297/yr + state fee | Included | Non-US founders who want bookkeeping bundled in |
Form Your LLC for $0 Plus State Fees
Bizee’s Silver plan covers your Articles of Organization filing with no service fee at all, the lowest year-one cost on this list.
1. Bizee: Best for the Lowest Year-One Cost
Bizee’s Silver plan forms your LLC for $0 plus your state’s filing fee, no service charge at all. You’ll still need to pay separately for a registered agent and EIN if you want them handled for you, but if you’re comfortable acting as your own registered agent for the first year, this is the cheapest legitimate path to an LLC I’ve found.
Their Gold and Platinum tiers add the EIN, registered agent service, and expedited filing if you’d rather bundle everything into one single order instead of piecing it together yourself. I compared this directly against MyCompanyWorks in my Bizee vs MyCompanyWorks breakdown if you want the full year-by-year math.
2. Northwest Registered Agent: Best for Privacy
Northwest Registered Agent charges a flat $39 plus your state fee, with your first year of registered agent service included free and renewing at $125/year after that. There are no upsell tiers to navigate, just one straightforward price.
What sets Northwest apart is privacy. They use their own address on your public filings instead of yours, which matters if you run your store from home and don’t want that address searchable. I break down the full comparison in my Northwest vs MyCompanyWorks guide.
3. ZenBusiness: Best for an Ongoing Compliance Dashboard
ZenBusiness starts at $0 plus state fees on their Starter plan, with Worry-Free Compliance free for year one before renewing at $199/year. Their Pro plan runs $199 and adds an EIN, operating agreement template, and faster processing, while Premium at $399 bundles in registered agent service and a business advisor consultation.
If you want a dashboard that actively tracks your state deadlines rather than just a formation service that files paperwork and disappears, ZenBusiness is worth a close look. It’s a heavier subscription commitment than MyCompanyWorks, so weigh that against how much hand-holding you actually want.
4. LegalZoom: Best for Brand Recognition
LegalZoom is the name most people have already heard of, and that brand recognition comes with a price premium. Formation itself starts at $0 plus state fees, but registered agent, EIN, and compliance add-ons stack up faster here than with most competitors on this list.
Where LegalZoom earns its premium is the ecosystem: trademark filing, business insurance, attorney consultations, and a wider range of legal services all live under one account. I wrote up the specific numbers in my LegalZoom vs MyCompanyWorks comparison.
5. Swyft Filings: Best for Fast, Budget Formation
Swyft Filings’ Basic plan is $50 plus state fees with 10-day processing. Their Standard plan at $149 adds your EIN, operating agreement, and drops processing to 5 days, while Premium at $299 gets you expedited filing and access to a large library of business document templates.
Swyft is a solid middle-of-the-road pick if MyCompanyWorks feels slightly overpriced for what you need but you still want a real support team rather than a pure DIY filing tool.
6. LegalNature: Best for DIY Legal Documents Beyond Formation
LegalNature forms your LLC starting near $0 plus state fees, but its real strength is the document library that comes with a subscription, roughly $84 to $119/year depending on tier. Contractor agreements, NDAs, and operating agreement templates are all included, which matters once your store starts signing supplier and freelancer contracts.
If your formation needs are simple but you know you’ll need a steady stream of business documents afterward, LegalNature’s subscription can end up cheaper than paying a lawyer per document.
7. Inc Authority: Best for Free Formation With a Tax Consultation
Inc Authority forms your LLC for $0 plus state fees and includes a free tax planning consultation as part of the base package, along with a year of free registered agent service that renews at $179/year afterward. Standard processing runs 5 to 7 business days.
The tax consultation is the differentiator here. Most free formation services stop at the paperwork. Inc Authority uses that first call to try to upsell you into their paid business credit and tax planning services, so go in knowing that’s the pitch and take only what you actually need.
8. Tailor Brands: Best for Formation Bundled With Branding
Tailor Brands runs on a subscription model rather than a one-time formation fee. The Lite plan is $0 plus state fees for bare-bones filing, Essential runs about $199/year and adds compliance tracking, and Elite at roughly $249/year throws in an AI logo maker, a DIY website builder, and social media design tools.
If you’re forming your LLC at the same time you’re building your store’s brand identity, the Elite tier can replace a Canva subscription and a freelance logo designer in one move. Registered agent service and EIN are separate add-ons at $199/year and $99 respectively, so read the fine print before assuming everything’s bundled. Because it bills as a recurring subscription rather than a one-time fee, run the three-year total before comparing it against a flat-fee competitor.
9. Firstbase: Best for Non-US Founders Who Want a Full Back Office
Firstbase charges $399 for formation, which includes EIN procurement without a Social Security Number, a year of registered agent service, and founder agreement templates. It’s built specifically for founders incorporating from outside the US who need banking introductions and Form 5472 compliance handled correctly from day one.
The ongoing costs add up though: registered agent renews at $299/year, a business address runs $315/year, and bookkeeping starts around $990/year if you use their bundled services. I compared this directly in my Firstbase vs Northwest Registered Agent breakdown for non-US founders trying to decide between the two.
10. Doola: Best for Non-US Founders Who Want Bookkeeping Bundled In
Doola‘s Starter plan is $297/year and covers formation, EIN, registered agent, and a US business address in one subscription. Their Total Compliance tier at $1,999/year adds bookkeeping, tax filing, Form 5472 for foreign-owned LLCs, and BOI filing.
Like Firstbase, doola targets non-US founders specifically, handling the fax-based IRS EIN process directly for people without an SSN. The difference is doola leans harder into bundling ongoing bookkeeping and tax compliance into the subscription instead of treating formation and back-office work as separate purchases.
How to Actually Choose Between These
Start with what you’re optimizing for. If it’s pure cost, Bizee or Inc Authority’s free tiers win. If it’s privacy, Northwest is purpose-built for that.
If you’re a non-US founder, Firstbase and doola are the only two on this list that actually specialize in your situation. Everyone else will technically work, but they weren’t designed around the specific paperwork problems non-US founders run into with the IRS.
Don’t just compare the sticker price. Add up the formation fee, your state’s filing fee, and the registered agent renewal cost for year two before you commit, since that renewal number is where most of these services actually differentiate from each other.
A quick gut-check I use with my own students: write down what you actually need in the first 12 months, not what sounds nice to have. If that list is just “file my LLC and hold my mail,” a $0 formation with a $39 to $125 registered agent covers it completely. If it includes branding, bookkeeping, or non-resident tax filings, pick the service built around that need instead of trying to bolt those services onto a bare-bones formation package later.
State Filing Fees Apply No Matter Which Service You Choose
Every price listed above is the formation service’s fee only. None of them include your state’s filing fee, and that number varies enormously depending on where you form. Kentucky and Arkansas sit around $40 to $45, Wyoming is close to $100, and Massachusetts runs $500, one of the highest in the country.
This is easy to overlook when you’re comparing a $0 formation service against a $50 one, since the state fee often dwarfs the difference between providers. You can check your exact state’s number through resources like California’s Secretary of State business filing portal. Delaware publishes its own numbers through the Delaware Division of Corporations fee schedule, and every other state has an equivalent page worth checking before you commit to a state or a service.
If you’re not sure which state actually makes sense for an ecommerce business, that decision matters more than which formation service you use. Read my complete guide to business formation for high-ticket dropshipping before you file anywhere.
EIN Costs Across These Alternatives
Every service on this list charges something for EIN acquisition, whether that’s a standalone add-on fee or something bundled into a higher tier. What most people don’t realize is that the Small Business Administration confirms EINs are always free when applied for directly through the IRS, regardless of which state you’re forming in or which entity type you choose.
The reason people pay anyway comes down to time and complexity. The direct IRS application requires a Social Security Number or ITIN, has to be completed in one sitting, and times out if you’re inactive too long. For non-US founders without an SSN, the process shifts to fax or mail, which is exactly the gap Firstbase and doola are built to close.
If you’re a US citizen comfortable navigating a government form, applying directly costs nothing and takes about ten minutes. If you’d rather it just be handled correctly the first time as part of your formation order, budget for the add-on fee on whichever service you pick.
Refund Policies and Guarantees Worth Checking Before You Order
Most of these services back their formation orders with some version of a satisfaction guarantee, meaning if they make a filing error on their end, they’ll fix it at no extra charge. That’s table stakes across the industry at this point, not a differentiator worth choosing a provider over.
Where it gets less forgiving is once your paperwork is actually filed with the state. State filing fees are non-refundable everywhere once submitted, since the state has already processed the work. Bizee and Inc Authority’s free-formation model makes this less painful since you’re only out the state fee if you change your mind. Firstbase and doola carry more risk here given their higher subscription pricing, so confirm the exact refund window in writing before you commit to either.
This matters most if you’re still deciding between an LLC and a corporation, or you haven’t locked in your state yet. Get those two decisions settled before you pay anyone, because reversing a filed entity means paying to dissolve it and starting over, not requesting a refund.
Getting Your Entity Right Is Only Step One
Whichever service you pick, forming the LLC is table stakes for building a real high-ticket dropshipping business, not the finish line.
Once your paperwork is filed, you still need a niche worth building around before you start sourcing products.
You’ll also need suppliers you can actually rely on. If you’d rather skip the trial and error on all three fronts, my team handles formation, niche selection, and your full store build through the done-for-you turnkey build.
Frequently Asked Questions About MyCompanyWorks Alternatives
What is the cheapest MyCompanyWorks alternative?
Bizee and Inc Authority both offer $0 formation packages where you only pay your state’s filing fee. You’ll need to add registered agent and EIN separately on either one if you want those handled for you.
Which MyCompanyWorks alternative is best for non-US founders?
Firstbase and Doola both specialize in EIN acquisition without a Social Security Number and handle the fax-based IRS process that trips up most general formation services.
Is Northwest Registered Agent better than MyCompanyWorks for privacy?
Yes. Northwest uses their own address on your public filings by default, which MyCompanyWorks’ standard registered agent add-on doesn’t emphasize the same way. Full comparison in my Northwest vs MyCompanyWorks breakdown.
Do any of these alternatives include a registered agent for free permanently?
No. Every service on this list, including MyCompanyWorks, bundles the first year of registered agent service and then charges an annual renewal, typically between $119 and $299 depending on the provider.
Can I get an EIN for free instead of paying a formation service for it?
Yes, the IRS issues EINs for free directly through their online application if you have an SSN or ITIN. Formation services charge for this mainly to save you the time and confusion of the direct process.
Ready to Get Your Ecommerce Business Legally Set Up the Right Way?
My team handles formation, suppliers, and your full store build in one turnkey process, from your first filing through your first live product listing.
Related Articles
If you found this useful, these guides go deeper on related topics:
- MyCompanyWorks Review 2026: A Solid Mid-Range LLC Formation Service for New Business Owners?
- MyCompanyWorks Pricing in 2026: Complete Breakdown of Basic, Entrepreneur, and Complete Plans
- Bizee vs MyCompanyWorks in 2026: Why US Founders Save $198 in Year 1
- LegalZoom vs MyCompanyWorks: Side-by-Side Comparison
- Best LLC Formation Services for High-Ticket Dropshipping in 2026
Trevor Fenner is an ecommerce entrepreneur and the founder of Ecommerce Paradise, a platform focused on helping entrepreneurs build and scale profitable high-ticket ecommerce and dropshipping businesses. With over a decade of hands-on experience, Trevor specializes in high-ticket dropshipping strategy, niche and product selection, supplier recruiting and onboarding, Google & Bing Shopping ads, ecommerce SEO, and systems-driven automation and scaling. Through Ecommerce Paradise, he provides free education via in-depth guides like How to Start High-Ticket Dropshipping, advanced training through the High-Ticket Dropshipping Masterclass, and fully done-for-you turnkey ecommerce services for entrepreneurs who want a faster, more hands-off path to growth. Trevor is known for emphasizing sustainable, real-world ecommerce models over hype-driven tactics, helping store owners build scalable, sellable, and location-independent brands.
