Best LLC Service in Missouri: File It Yourself or Use a Formation Service
Last verified: November 5, 2026
Most Missouri founders do not need to pay anyone to form an LLC. The state charges $50 to file the Articles of Organization online (Missouri Secretary of State: schedule of fees and charges), and Missouri LLCs file no annual report (Missouri Secretary of State: corporations FAQ). What a formation service can sell you is time, a registered agent, and a second pair of eyes. This page sets filing it yourself through the state portal next to the two formation services we partner with, BetterLegal and Northwest Registered Agent, and says when each is worth paying for. We do not rank the two partners: the prices below are the formation and registered agent prices our team has checked, with the date.
Our position: file yourself if you are a solo owner with a simple setup and a business address you are fine having on public record. Pay for a registered agent if you want that address off the record or cannot be reachable during business hours. Pay for a bundled package only when the time saved is worth more to you than the markup. The step-by-step filing is in our Missouri LLC guide.
What the State Charges, and What You Would Be Paying Extra For
Start from the government fees, because every service price is "the state fee plus something." Here are the Missouri figures that matter before you compare anyone.
| Item | Cost | Source |
|---|---|---|
| LLC Articles of Organization, filed online | $50 | Missouri Secretary of State: schedule of fees and charges |
| LLC Articles of Organization, filed on paper | $105 | Missouri Secretary of State: schedule of fees and charges |
| Name reservation (60 days, renewable twice) | $25 | Missouri Secretary of State: corporations FAQ |
| Fictitious name (DBA) registration | $7 | Missouri Secretary of State: fictitious name form (Corp. 56) |
| Change of registered agent or office | $10 | Statement of Change of Registered Agent or Registered Office (Corp. 59) |
| Annual report for an LLC | None required | Missouri Secretary of State: corporations FAQ |
| EIN from the IRS | Free | IRS: get an Employer Identification Number |
Two lines in that table decide most purchases. The first is the $55 gap between online and paper filing: if a service files on paper for you, you are paying for a slower route. The second is the EIN. The IRS issues it free, and a package that lists "EIN included" as a feature is charging for a few minutes of form entry.
1. File It Yourself Through the Secretary of State
File through the state's Missouri Secretary of State: online business services. You will need the LLC name, a registered agent with a Missouri address, and the organizer's details. Check name availability first in the Missouri Secretary of State: business entity search; the Secretary of State also notes that registering a fictitious name does not give you exclusive rights to it (Missouri Secretary of State: corporations FAQ), so do not treat a DBA as a substitute for forming the LLC under the name you want. The paper version is Articles of Organization (Form LLC 1).
The cost is $50, and nothing recurs to the Secretary of State afterward. The risk is yours: a wrong name or agent entry means correcting it later, and the agent address you type becomes part of the public record. If you list your home, that is where process servers will look.
Best for: solo owners and spouses with a simple structure, a business address they are happy to publish, and the patience to read a form.
2. Hire a Registered Agent Only
Missouri requires every LLC to maintain a registered agent with a Missouri address (Missouri Secretary of State: general services and filings). The agent can be an individual Missouri resident or an authorized business entity whose office matches the registered office. That means a paid agent solves two separate problems: someone is always there to accept legal papers, and your home address stays off the filing.
BetterLegal's pricing page lists a registered agent subscription at $12.5 per month or $120 per year (BetterLegal pricing, checked November 5, 2026). Northwest Registered Agent lists LLC formation at $39 plus the state filing fee (Northwest Registered Agent pricing, checked November 5, 2026); we have not verified its registered agent price, so we do not print one. Compare the renewal price, not the first-year promotion, and confirm what happens to your documents when you cancel. Changing agents later costs the state's $10 filing fee plus the new agent's rate (Statement of Change of Registered Agent or Registered Office (Corp. 59)). Our Missouri registered agent guide covers the legal requirements in detail.
Best for: anyone who works from home, travels, or does not want a business address tied to a residence. Not worth it for: an owner who is at a staffed Missouri office during business hours and does not mind the address being public.
3. Use a Formation Service
A service files the Articles for you and, depending on the provider, may add an EIN, an operating agreement and a registered agent. What is bundled differs by provider, so read the checkout page before you pay. Your real cost is the $50 online state fee plus the service fee, so a service that quotes a total should break the two apart.
| Route | Price beyond the state fee | What the source lists | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| File it yourself | $0 | You enter the name, agent and organizer yourself; the EIN is free from the IRS | Missouri Secretary of State: schedule of fees and charges |
| BetterLegal: LLC formation | $299 plus the state filing fee | Turnaround listed as 2 business days; EIN, operating agreement, banking resolution and bonus forms, including an S-corp election form | BetterLegal pricing, checked November 5, 2026 |
| BetterLegal: registered agent only | $12.5 per month or $120 per year | Listed as a subscription, separate from formation | BetterLegal pricing, checked November 5, 2026 |
| Northwest Registered Agent: LLC formation | $39 plus the state filing fee | What the price includes and its registered agent price are not verified | Northwest Registered Agent pricing, checked November 5, 2026 |
As arithmetic, BetterLegal's $299 plus Missouri's $50 online fee comes to $349, and Northwest's $39 plus the $50 online fee comes to $89, if the Articles go in at the online rate and neither quote already includes the state fee; we cannot see which Missouri fee each charges, so confirm that at checkout. Neither price is confirmed to include a registered agent, so ask before you assume it does.
The honest case for a service is convenience. The honest case against is that two common line items, the EIN and the state filing, cost you little or nothing to do yourself. Ask whether the filing goes in through the state's online system or on paper, since the paper fee is $105. The two partners in the box above are the only services we point readers to, and the box states their current offers.
Best for: founders who value speed over savings and would rather make one purchase than three separate filings.
4. Add Legal Review or Ongoing Compliance
Some providers bundle an attorney call or compliance reminders. Weigh these against what Missouri actually requires of an LLC. There is no annual report to the state, so "annual compliance" in Missouri is mostly agent renewal and your own tax registrations. For those, the Missouri Department of Revenue: register your business page covers online registration for sales tax, withholding and unemployment accounts, and the Missouri Department of Revenue: business tax registration page says a business making sales of tangible personal property or taxable services needs a sales tax license. If you hire employees, the Missouri Division of Employment Security: employers page is where unemployment insurance starts.
A reminder service helps only if you would otherwise forget those dates. A legal review is worth paying for in a different situation: more than one member, an owner who is leaving or joining, or a business that will hold real property or sign large contracts. A template operating agreement does not replace advice from a Missouri attorney in those cases.
Best for: multi-member LLCs and owners with real assets at stake. Not worth it for: a solo owner whose only recurring task is a sales tax return.
What No Formation Service Does for You
- Local licenses: the Secretary of State does not issue business licenses; they come from the city or county (Missouri Secretary of State: corporations FAQ). Starting steps are on the Missouri Secretary of State: steps for starting a business page, and our cost to start a business in Missouri guide lists what else to budget.
- Tax accounts: registering with the Department of Revenue is a separate filing from forming the LLC.
- Profession-specific permits: trade, health, food and childcare permits come from their own agencies, not from a formation package.
Checks Before You Pay Anyone
- Agent address: confirm in writing that the agent has a Missouri address and will accept papers there.
- Filing route: ask whether the Articles are filed online ($50) or on paper ($105).
- Renewal price: get the second-year agent rate before you buy the first.
- Cancellation: confirm how you transfer the agent role out, since the state treats a change as a filing with its own fee.
- Price check: compare the provider's total against $50 plus the agent rate you were quoted separately.
If every answer comes back clean, the price difference between providers is small next to the cost of an agent who stops forwarding your mail.
Disclaimer
This article is general information, not legal or tax advice. Fees and forms change, so confirm current figures with the Missouri Secretary of State before you file. For a multi-member LLC or a liability question, speak with a licensed Missouri attorney; for tax questions, a CPA.
Sources
- Missouri Secretary of State: schedule of fees and charges, edition 01/2025.
- Missouri Secretary of State: corporations FAQ: LLC annual report, local business licenses, name reservation, fictitious names.
- Missouri Secretary of State: general services and filings: registered agent rules.
- Missouri Secretary of State: online business services.
- Missouri Secretary of State: business entity search.
- Articles of Organization (Form LLC 1).
- Statement of Change of Registered Agent or Registered Office (Corp. 59).
- Missouri Secretary of State: fictitious name form (Corp. 56).
- Missouri Secretary of State: steps for starting a business.
- Missouri Department of Revenue: register your business.
- Missouri Department of Revenue: business tax registration.
- Missouri Division of Employment Security: employers.
- IRS: get an Employer Identification Number.
- BetterLegal pricing, checked November 5, 2026: LLC formation price, turnaround, what is included, registered agent subscription.
- Northwest Registered Agent pricing, checked November 5, 2026: LLC formation $39 plus the state filing fee.