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Founder Primer

LLC paperwork, boiled down for founders.

Guide 2 · Washington

Washington Registered Agent Primer (2026): 6 Moves and the 2 Best Agents

If you are hiring for appointing a registered agent in Washington in 2026, we rank WA Registered Agent.org ($99 a year) and Mainstay Filing ($149 a year), in that order. Make the 6 moves below and your registered agent is set up properly.
From the Founder Primer desk

Key facts

Do you need one?
Yes
Official page: app.leg.wa.gov (October 2026)
Agent price range
$99 to $149 a year
As listed
Annual report
$70 a year
Official page: sos.wa.gov (October 2026)
Primer moves
6
Listed below

What you will be able to do

  • Why Washington wants an agent on file
  • The eligibility and address rules
  • Getting the agent filed
  • How the agents compare

Who we would hire in Washington

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

First choice $99 yearly, then $99

1. WA Registered Agent.org: best for a low yearly agent price

In Washington, WA Registered Agent.org is number one: $99 a year gets you a Washington agent with an office in the state.

It costs less than Mainstay Filing over three years, and three-year cost is 27% of the mark.

Inside the price
  • A Washington street address
  • Served papers scanned into your account
In its favor
  • Yearly price below the national pick
  • A flat $99 per year
Against it
  • Another state needs another agent
  • Annual report is outside the price
Visit WA Registered Agent.org Partner link. We may earn money if you buy.
Upkeep included $149 yearly, then $149

2. Mainstay Filing: best for one agent for every state

Second place is Mainstay Filing, because $149 a year, $149 when it renews, same plan in all fifty states.

Add up three years: $150 more than WA Registered Agent.org.

Inside the price
  • A street address for the registered office
  • Served papers scanned free, the same business day
  • Three government letters a year scanned at no charge
  • Also serves nonprofits, corporations, LPs and LLPs
In its favor
  • $149 yearly, no increase
  • Follows you into any state
Against it
  • $50 a year over WA Registered Agent.org
  • Reports need the formation package
Visit Mainstay Filing Partner link. We may earn money if you buy.

Comparing the services

# Service Annual price Renewal price Three-year total
1 WA Registered Agent.org $99 $99/yr $297 Visit WA Registered Agent.org Partner link. We may earn money if you buy.
2 Mainstay Filing $149 $149/yr $447 Visit Mainstay Filing Partner link. We may earn money if you buy.

Each company's listed price on November 13, 2026. State fees stay the same with any agent.

The moves

  1. Move 1

    What Washington requires

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

    Where this comes from: Official page: app.leg.wa.gov (October 2026)

  2. Move 2

    Who may serve

    A commercial registered agent listed with the Secretary of State, a noncommercial agent (any person or business with a Washington address), or the holder of a named position in the company. The agent consents in advance. (RCW 23.95.415)

  3. Move 3

    The address test

    The address has to be a physical street address in Washington. P.O. boxes and private mailboxes are not accepted.

    A service provides a Washington street address, so yours stays off the record.

  4. Move 4

    Self-serve or professional

    Qualifying owners can name themselves. The recommended agents cost $99 to $149 annually.

  5. Move 5

    List the agent publicly

    You name the agent in your filing with the Washington Secretary of State; any change is a separate filing at the same office.

    Where this comes from: Official page: sos.wa.gov (October 2026)

  6. Move 6

    Track the repeating filing

    Anything the state sends about the annual report goes to your registered agent. The filing costs $70 every year, due last day of the entity's anniversary month.

    Where this comes from: Official page: sos.wa.gov (October 2026)

What the agent costs in Washington

Item Pay to Cost
Agent service The service $99 to $149 a year
Each later year The service $99 to $149 a year
Annual report To the state $70 every year

These are the official Washington fees, cited below. The three-year line adds the filing fee, the year-two and year-three reports and any minimum tax.

The logic behind the order

Founder outlay over three years decided first place in Washington. It is 27% of the mark; the rest is to-dos the price takes off you, year-two price, fit with the state's rules and pricing you can read at once.

Add up three years and WA Registered Agent.org is $297, $150 below Mainstay Filing.

What founders ask

Is a registered agent a legal must in Washington?

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

Can I be my own registered agent?

Often. Run the two tests in moves 2 and 3.

Can I change my registered agent later?

Yes. A switch takes a change filing at the Washington Secretary of State (move 5).

What does a registered agent cost in Washington?

$99 to $149 per year for the agents listed.

What does the LLC pay the state each year?

$70 every year for the annual report.

Which registered agent would you choose?

WA Registered Agent.org, since $99 a year, flat at renewal, built for an LLC that stays in the state. Then Mainstay Filing.

Related primers

Sources, so you can check us

  1. Backup for the Washington Secretary of State, Corporations & Charities Division section: ccfs.sos.wa.gov, read August 2026.
  2. Backup for the Washington Secretary of State, Corporations & Charities Division section: sos.wa.gov, read August 2026.
  3. Backup for the Washington yearly filing: Annual report, official source section: sos.wa.gov, read October 2026.
  4. Backup for the Washington report due date section: app.leg.wa.gov, read August 2026.
  5. Backup for the Washington formation fee: Filing fee, official source section: sos.wa.gov, read October 2026.
  6. Backup for the Washington formation fee: Filing fee, official source section: sos.wa.gov, read October 2026.
  7. Backup for the Washington registered agent statute section: app.leg.wa.gov, read October 2026.
  8. Pricing from WA Registered Agent.org (pricing page), November 13, 2026
  9. Pricing from Mainstay Filing (Washington service page), November 13, 2026