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Founder Primer

LLC paperwork, boiled down for founders.

Primer 1 · Georgia

LLC Formation in Georgia (2026): 7 Moves and the 3 Best LLC Services

Our 2026 marks for starting an LLC in Georgia: Mainstay Filing ($199), Georgia Registered Agent.co ($199) and GA Registered Agent.org ($199), highest first. 7 moves, $110 to the state, then the annual registration every year.
From the Founder Primer desk

Need to know

Filing fee
$110
Check it yourself at sos.ga.gov; we read it in October 2026
Annual registration
$60 a year
Deadline, as the state words it: April 1
Three years of state fees
$230
No service fees counted
Move count
7
First to last

What you will be able to do

  • The Georgia formation form, its price and where it goes
  • The registered agent requirement
  • What you file every year after
  • The services we rank

The Georgia shortlist

Three-year cost and to-dos cleared weigh the most. How we score lists all five criteria.

Top mark $199 yearly; renewal $199

1. Mainstay Filing: best for new owners who want it done

First place goes to Mainstay Filing because the founder pays $199 a year and skips three separate vendors for filing, registered agent and annual registration.

Three years run $200 higher than Georgia Registered Agent.co, and more of the work gets done.

Included: the annual registration, with the state's $60 charged exactly as Georgia sets it.

Inside the price
  • Formation filing, prepared and sent
  • Registered agent all year
  • Annual registration filed on time
  • EIN application included
  • Official fee, nothing added
In its favor
  • $199 each year
  • EIN application included
  • $199 a year covers filing and agent and report
Against it
  • $100 a year over Georgia Registered Agent.co at renewal
Visit Mainstay Filing Partner link. We may earn money if you buy.
Local option $199 plus fees, then $99 yearly

2. Georgia Registered Agent.co: best for founders staying in Georgia

Georgia Registered Agent.co takes second; forming costs $199 beyond the state fee; the agent renews at $99.

You file the annual registration yourself every year.

Inside the price
  • The Georgia formation, prepared and sent
  • Agent service for year one
In its favor
  • $199 to form
  • Agent renews at $99
  • Year-one agent service costs nothing extra
Against it
  • The annual registration stays with you
  • It charges $99 for the EIN
Visit Georgia Registered Agent.co Partner link. We may earn money if you buy.
Local option $199 plus fees, then $99 yearly

3. GA Registered Agent.org: best for a low agent renewal

GA Registered Agent.org takes third; forming costs $199 beyond the state fee; the agent renews at $99.

You file the annual registration yourself every year.

On price it ties with Georgia Registered Agent.co.

Inside the price
  • The Georgia formation, prepared and sent
  • Agent service for year one
In its favor
  • Agent renews at $99
  • $199 to form
  • Year-one agent service costs nothing extra
Against it
  • The annual registration stays with you
  • It charges $99 for the EIN
Visit GA Registered Agent.org Partner link. We may earn money if you buy.

All prices in one table

# Service First year From year two Three-year total
1 Mainstay Filing $199 $199/yr $597 Visit Mainstay Filing Partner link. We may earn money if you buy.
2 Georgia Registered Agent.co $199 $99/yr $397 Visit Georgia Registered Agent.co Partner link. We may earn money if you buy.
3 GA Registered Agent.org $199 $99/yr $397 Visit GA Registered Agent.org Partner link. We may earn money if you buy.

Pulled from each company's pricing page on November 13, 2026. Every row owes the $110 state fee as well.

The primer, move by move

  1. Move 1

    Make sure the name is yours to use

    Name search comes first. Use the records at the Georgia Secretary of State.

    Show up with a second name.

  2. Move 2

    Put a registered agent in place

    Every LLC must name a registered agent with an in-state street address. A Georgia resident, a Georgia corporation or LLC, or a corporation or LLC from another state with authority to do business in Georgia. An entity cannot be its own agent.

    The address has to be a Georgia street address that is also the agent's business office, and the agent has to be located there. A P.O. box or mail drop cannot be used.

    Any service we rank here can serve as your registered agent.

    Where this comes from: Check it yourself at sos.ga.gov; we read it in October 2026

  3. Move 3

    Self-file against a service

    DIY costs the $110 state fee and your time. A service adds $199 and does the forms; our ranking says which.

  4. Move 4

    Finish and lodge the Articles of Organization

    Three things: the Articles of Organization (Form CD 030), $110, and the Georgia Secretary of State as the recipient. Statute: O.C.G.A. § 14-11-203.

    Where this comes from: Check it yourself at sos.ga.gov; we read it in October 2026

  5. Move 5

    Request an Employer Identification Number

    The IRS issues EINs, not Georgia. Apply after approval and hand the number to your bank. The Mainstay Filing package already includes this move.

  6. Move 6

    Write an operating agreement

    Owners sign it to settle shares, votes and what happens when someone leaves. It is private and never filed.

  7. Move 7

    Stay in good standing in Georgia

    Every year the LLC files the annual registration and pays $60; deadline April 1. File late and add $25.

    Where this comes from: Check it yourself at sos.ga.gov; we read it in October 2026

Costs, move by move

Item Paid to Total
Setting up the LLC State agency $110
Annual registration State agency $60 every year
If the report is late State agency $25
Filing service (optional) The provider $199 to begin
State fees, years one to three State agency $230

Filing plus the reports in years two and three plus any minimum tax: that is the state's three-year total. Sources are listed below.

Why this order

The deciding criterion: to-dos the price takes off you, at 38% of the mark.

Georgia wants the annual registration every year, so a price that files it beat a lower one that leaves it to you.

What founders ask

What will a Georgia LLC cost to start?

Georgia bills $110. A service adds $199 the first year.

Which form creates the LLC?

Once the Georgia Secretary of State accepts the Articles of Organization (Form CD 030), the LLC exists.

Is a registered agent required?

Every LLC must name a registered agent with an in-state street address.

What does Georgia require each year?

File the annual registration every year, $60; deadline April 1.

Can I form the LLC without a service?

Yes. Pay the state $110 at filing; the LLC still needs a registered agent.

Which LLC service should a first-time founder use?

Mainstay Filing first, then Georgia Registered Agent.co and GA Registered Agent.org; Mainstay Filing wins on to-dos the price takes off you.

More primers

Sources, so you can check us

  1. For Georgia Secretary of State fee schedule Rev. 8/2025 the primer cites sos.ga.gov, a page we went back to in October 2026.
  2. For Georgia report due date the primer cites law.justia.com, a page we went back to in August 2026.
  3. For Georgia Secretary of State Corporations Division fee schedule the primer cites sos.ga.gov, a page we went back to in October 2026.
  4. For Georgia registered agent statute the primer cites sos.ga.gov, a page we went back to in October 2026.
  5. The Georgia service page from Mainstay Filing, November 13, 2026
  6. The pricing page from Georgia Registered Agent.co, November 13, 2026
  7. The pricing page from GA Registered Agent.org, November 13, 2026