LLC Filing Fees

Nothing is free, and LLCs are no different.

An LLC filing fee is a one-time fee paid to the state when you create your LLC. Once your LLC exists, most states then charge a recurring fee — alongside an Annual Report (or, in some states, a Biennial Report) — to keep your LLC in compliance. When you file your Articles of Organization, you'll need to have payment ready for the correct amount, whether that's a check, money order, or an online payment depending on your state's process.

As a rough national average, forming an LLC in the US costs somewhere around $130, though the real range is wide: filing fees run from as low as $40 (Kentucky) up to $500 (Massachusetts). Florida sits at $125 to form, with an unusually specific $138.75 annual fee.

Late Fees and What Happens If You Miss the Deadline

States charge late fees if your Annual Report isn't filed by the deadline — and in the large majority of states, failing to file at all can result in the state administratively dissolving your LLC. An administratively dissolved LLC isn't just a paperwork problem: it can mean losing the liability protection an LLC is supposed to provide, and reinstating a dissolved LLC typically costs more, and takes longer, than simply filing on time would have.

Fees Per State

The following reflects filing fees and recurring fees as of early 2026. A few notes on how to read it: "Annual/Biennial Fee" is the recurring cost to maintain good standing, alongside "Frequency" showing how often it's due. Some states show $0 — this generally means no separate annual report fee, though it doesn't always mean zero ongoing obligations (more on that below for a few specific states).

A Few States Worth a Second Look

Alabama

Alabama's standalone LLC Annual Report requirement was removed in 2024. This doesn't necessarily mean Alabama LLCs have zero ongoing state obligations — Alabama still has a Business Privilege Tax that applies to LLCs, calculated differently than a flat annual report fee. If you're forming in Alabama, this is worth a direct conversation with a tax professional or the Alabama Department of Revenue rather than relying on the old "$100+ Annual Report" framing.

California

California's $800 figure is technically an annual Franchise Tax, not an "Annual Report fee" in the same sense as most other states — and it applies to every California LLC regardless of income, including LLCs with no revenue at all. On top of the $800 minimum, LLCs with gross receipts over $250,000 owe additional fees on a sliding scale that can run into the thousands of dollars at higher revenue levels. California also has a separate $20 Statement of Information fee due biennially. For an indie author LLC formed in California, the $800 franchise tax is the number to plan around from year one — there's no first-year exemption.

Tennessee

Tennessee's annual fee was previously structured with a "+" — additional amounts based on factors like membership count. As of July 2025, this was simplified to a flat $300 per year, regardless of those factors. If you formed a Tennessee LLC before this change and are budgeting based on an older figure, the current flat rate may actually be simpler (and in some cases lower) than what you were expecting.

Texas

Texas doesn't have a traditional annual report fee — instead, LLCs file an annual Franchise Tax report. Many small LLCs owe $0 in actual franchise tax due to a no-tax-due threshold based on revenue, but the report itself still needs to be filed even when no tax is owed. LLCs above the revenue threshold owe franchise tax calculated from their revenue, which is why the figure in the table shows a range rather than a single number.

Budgeting for the Real First-Year Cost

When you're planning the cost of forming your publishing LLC, the filing fee alone tells an incomplete story. The more useful number is your total first-year cost: the filing fee, plus whatever annual or biennial fee comes due within that first year (which, as covered in LLC Effective Filing Date, you may be able to push into the following year with a delayed effective date), plus any registered agent fee if you're using a service for that rather than acting as your own registered agent.

For most states, budgeting $100-$300 for the first year covers the filing fee and first annual fee comfortably. California and Massachusetts are the clear outliers — both push first-year costs toward $800-1,000 or more, and that's worth knowing before you choose where to form, particularly if you have any flexibility in that choice. As a general rule, though, forming in the state where you actually live and do business is usually the right call regardless of fees elsewhere — forming out-of-state typically means registering as a foreign LLC in your home state too, doubling your paperwork and often your costs.

LLC filing fees and annual fees are a real, ongoing cost of running your publishing business as an LLC — not large in absolute terms for most states, but real enough that missing a deadline or budgeting incorrectly can turn a manageable cost into an unpleasant surprise. Know your state's actual current figures, mark your Annual Report deadline clearly, and treat these fees as the predictable cost of doing business that they are.

- Randall