LegalZoom at a glance
LegalZoom combines self-service business formation with a much larger legal-products marketplace. The formation flow prepares and submits LLC articles, but the surrounding catalog includes operating agreements, EIN service, registered agents, compliance filing, licenses, virtual mail, attorney plans, forms, trademarks, copyrights, and other business and personal legal services.
That breadth is the reason to choose LegalZoom—and the reason to read the checkout slowly. The current packages are Basic at $0, Pro at $249, and Premium at $299, each plus the state filing fee. Pro and Premium contain subscription trials that can continue after the included period, while registered-agent service is currently a separate $249-per-year product.
| Review question | DollarScout finding |
|---|---|
| Best for | Founders who expect to need legal documents or attorney-plan access after formation |
| Formation plans | Basic $0; Pro $249; Premium $299, plus state fees |
| Registered agent | Separate service at $249/year under the current product page |
| Main strength | Broad legal, compliance, document, and attorney ecosystem |
| Main risk | Paid bundles include subscriptions and cross-sells with separate renewals |
What the formation service covers
All three plans include a name check, preparation and filing of articles of organization, and a digital welcome packet. LegalZoom says it audits the filing information and sends the document to the right state agency. Its accuracy guarantee provides correction at no added cost when rejection or error results from LegalZoom's mistake, subject to the guarantee terms.
The service does not decide whether an LLC is the correct structure or state, guarantee that a name is legally safe beyond the state check, provide a license, or make the LLC operational. A state name-availability result is not a federal trademark clearance. Formation also does not create a bank account, bookkeeping system, insurance policy, owner agreement tailored to negotiations, or tax election.
The SBA explains that structure affects liability, taxation, paperwork, and fundraising. Founders with multiple owners, outside investors, professional licensing, non-U.S. members, unusual profit allocations, or operations in several states should settle those questions before submitting generic articles.
Basic: focused filing at a $0 service fee
Pricing scores 4.0/5. Basic costs $0 plus state fees and includes the articles, name check, filing service, welcome materials, and a third-party tax consultation offer. It does not include the operating agreement or EIN service shown in Pro and Premium.
Basic is the cleanest LegalZoom purchase for a founder who already understands the entity, can obtain an operating agreement from an appropriate source, will apply for the EIN directly, and does not want a legal-plan trial. The IRS issues EINs directly for free; paying a provider buys assistance, not a government benefit.
The $0 label should never be used as the LLC budget. State filing charges vary. Some jurisdictions add initial reports, publication, business licenses, or franchise taxes. The entity may need a registered agent, and LegalZoom's agent service is not part of Basic under the current comparison.
Pro: documents, EIN, and an attorney-plan trial
Pro costs $249 plus state fees. It adds an operating agreement, EIN service, 150-plus customizable legal documents for one year, eSignature access for one year, a Wix website offer, and 30 days of the Business Attorney Plan.
The attorney plan currently auto-renews at $49 per month after the included 30 days unless canceled. It offers 30-minute consultations about new legal topics and document review subject to plan conditions, scheduling, page limits, attorney availability, and excluded matters. “Unlimited” does not mean continuous representation of the same case or unlimited drafting.
Pro makes sense when the founder intends to use the documents and at least one qualified attorney consultation and has a reminder to evaluate the plan before renewal. It is poor value when the EIN and template are the only desired items. The owner can apply for an EIN free, and a generic operating agreement may be inappropriate for negotiated multi-member governance.
Premium: bookkeeping tools, not premium legal representation
Premium costs $299 plus state fees, only $50 more than Pro under the current page. It adds six months of LegalZoom's bookkeeping tools, including invoicing, proposals, income and expense tracking, and mileage capture.
The bookkeeping subscription currently auto-renews at $9.99 per month after six months unless canceled. Premium also carries the Pro attorney-plan trial and its $49 monthly conversion. The word Premium therefore refers to the bundle, not a higher level of state filing or permanent attorney representation.
Premium can be reasonable when the owner wants to test the bookkeeping workflow and will export records or keep the service intentionally. It adds little if the business already has accounting software. Migrating six months of categories, invoices, or mileage later can create more work than the introductory value saves.
Registered-agent service is separate
Most active LLCs and corporations must maintain a registered agent that can receive official mail and service of process at a physical address in the relevant state. LegalZoom currently prices its service at $249 per year, automatically renewing unless canceled.
The service includes alerts, digital scans, cloud storage, annual-report reminders, the use of LegalZoom's agent address on the public record, and preparation and covered state charges when switching agents. This can protect a home address in the registered-agent field and remove the need to stay at one location during business hours.
It is not full mail forwarding, annual-report filing, a lawyer, or universal privacy. Other formation fields, licenses, tax registrations, property records, and banking documents can still disclose owner or business addresses. A company registered in multiple states commonly needs agent coverage in each state.
At $249, LegalZoom is materially more expensive than Northwest's current $125 annual agent price and ZenBusiness's $199 renewal. LegalZoom's value case is account integration and broader services rather than price leadership.
Compliance and licenses
Compliance Tools score 4.6/5 because LegalZoom offers annual-report, compliance, and license products around the formation. The current Compliance Filings plus Licenses & Permits package is advertised at $299 per year. Registered-agent reminders alone do not file an annual report; check the exact product scope.
No private service can turn a generic compliance dashboard into a complete legal inventory. State reports are only one layer. A business may face tax registrations, payroll, sales tax, professional boards, city or county licenses, zoning, insurance conditions, corporate records, and foreign qualification.
Beneficial-ownership reporting is a dated example. FinCEN's current March 2025 interim final rule exempts U.S.-created domestic entities and their beneficial owners from federal BOI reporting; certain foreign entities registered in the United States may still report. Older checklists and paid offers should be tested against the current government page.
Ease of use and cross-sells
Ease of Use scores 4.4/5. LegalZoom presents the package ladder clearly, asks guided formation questions, and gives phone and chat support. The same account can later hold agent notices, documents, subscriptions, and other orders.
The deduction reflects decision density. Formation buyers encounter multiple adjacent products with different legal roles and renewal clocks. The interface can be easy to complete while the economic choice is still complicated. A founder should pause at every option and ask whether it is required by government, useful delegation, an introductory subscription, or simply unrelated marketing.
Take screenshots or save the order summary. List every included period and its next price. Do not assume canceling one subscription cancels the others.
Filing speed and the accuracy guarantee
Filing Speed scores 4.2/5. LegalZoom can prepare and transmit the order, but approval remains with the state. State timing depends on agency workload, filing method, errors, holidays, and government expedite options. The current package page does not make a single nationwide approval-time promise, which is more realistic than implying every state moves alike.
The 100% Accurate Filing Guarantee is narrower than guaranteed formation. LegalZoom says it will correct a filing rejected or made incorrect due to its own error without added cost. It does not guarantee approval when the customer gave inaccurate information, the name is unavailable, the profession requires approval, the purpose is prohibited, or the state changes its rules.
Founders with a lease, bank closing, payroll date, or regulated launch should check their state directly and avoid committing to a launch date until approval is in hand.
Support and attorney access
Support scores 4.5/5. LegalZoom publishes phone and chat support and currently lists LLC sales-help hours of Monday through Friday 5 a.m.–7 p.m. Pacific and weekends 7 a.m.–4 p.m. Pacific. The help center and product footnotes are detailed. We did not time a response or assess attorney advice.
Product support can explain an order, subscription, or filing status. Attorney access is a separate legal-plan service fulfilled through plan arrangements and independent network attorneys. The plan's 30-minute consultations on new topics should not be equated with full representation, litigation work, or tax advice.
Refund policy and subscription control
LegalZoom's current guarantee allows a refund request for a filed product within 60 days of purchase only before submission to the government. Once documents are submitted, the formation order is no longer refundable. A bundled order can become nonrefundable when any included product has been submitted. Government and third-party fees are not returned after payment.
Initial subscription purchases generally have a 30-day refund window, with exceptions when a service has been used. A completed attorney consultation, downloaded form, generated license report, or other fulfillment can end eligibility. The precise guarantee page should be read before purchase.
Canceling a LegalZoom service does not dissolve the LLC, replace a registered agent, or stop state reports and taxes. Download documents and create a government-level compliance calendar before closing the account.
LegalZoom versus ZenBusiness and Northwest
Choose ZenBusiness for a more productized formation-and-compliance dashboard and a lower Pro starting point. Choose Northwest Registered Agent for privacy-oriented formation, one included year of registered-agent service, and a lower published agent renewal.
Choose LegalZoom when the broader legal ecosystem is the feature: contracts, attorney-plan consultations, trademarks, compliance, and other legal products may be easier to source in one account. Price the services individually, because ecosystem breadth is not the same as bundle value.
Decision checklist
LegalZoom is a good candidate when you:
- Have already chosen the correct entity and state.
- Want access to legal documents or an attorney plan after formation.
- Understand the limits on “unlimited” consultations.
- Have recorded the $49 attorney and $9.99 bookkeeping conversion dates.
- Have compared the $249 registered-agent cost with alternatives.
It is easier to skip when only basic articles are needed, direct filing is comfortable, or a dedicated attorney must draft negotiated governance and provide continuing representation.
Bottom line
LegalZoom earns 4.3/5. Basic is a credible $0-service-fee filing, and Pro or Premium can be worthwhile for founders who intentionally use the legal documents and consultation access. Few competitors offer as broad a path from formation into other legal tasks.
The tradeoff is subscription complexity. Read the footnotes, price two years, separate government requirements from optional services, and set cancellation reminders before any included period begins. LegalZoom is strongest as a legal-services ecosystem, not as the cheapest way to submit articles.
