Which state? — the state-picker
The first question every non-resident founder asks, answered from records instead of folklore. Five short questions — where you live, what you sell, how you will bank, where you will actually operate, and what you want to optimise — produce a three-state shortlist with the reason for each state stated in figures you can check on its sheet.
The ranking uses only this site's verified dataset: formation fees checked 2026-11-03 and ongoing duties checked 2026-11-04 against official state sources, with the source recorded on each state's sheet. Coverage is 50 states + DC. If the state you are set on is Wyoming or Delaware, the tool ranks it on the same verified figures as every other state — both are covered, and the Wyoming–Delaware comparison page sets the two side by side. For the full readiness brief (duty calendar, EIN path, printable Route Brief) run the route diagnostic as well; this tool is its state-choice front door, not a second diagnostic.
Your shortlist
The membership — the same in every covered state
$399/yr or $39/mo (12-month minimum on the monthly plan) — formation in your chosen covered state, registered agent for year one, and the EIN included in year one; renewals keep the agent, the annual state filing service, and the compliance calendar running. Your state's filing fee is a pass-through at cost, on top of the membership — the shortlist above shows it in every total.
Start my LLC See pricing in full
No dead end: if you are not ready to form, save the shortlist below, read your top state's sheet, or run the route diagnostic for the full Route Brief.
Save this shortlist to the record
Saving records your answers, your shortlist, a screening record, and a consent record in this business's capture queue — the same fleet-capture pattern, screening, and consent artifacts the checkout flow uses — and returns a real reference. The shortlist itself stays on this page in full whether or not you save it.
Price the state you pick — and read the whole route
Once the shortlist names a state, price it in full on the total-cost calculator: the full first-year cost and the ongoing annual cost, membership and state charges on separate lines, from the same verified dataset this tool ranks on. The Non-Resident's Handbook gathers the whole route — state choice, the three formation routes, the process, the EIN without an SSN, and the annual cycle — into one guide drawn only from this site's verified material.
Before you form: the three routes, compared
Choosing a state is half the decision; choosing who does the forming is the other half. Forming as a non-resident: platform, specialist, or yourself compares filing with the state yourself (the cheapest route), a general formation platform described generically, and this membership, on the same criteria — including Wyoming and Delaware, covered on the same terms as every other state.