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Founder Mentor Guide

Walkthrough 1 · Georgia

Georgia LLC Formation Walkthrough (2026): 7 Stages and the 3 Best LLC Services

Ranked for 2026, the services worth your call for forming an LLC in Georgia are Mainstay Filing ($199), Georgia Registered Agent.co ($199) and GA Registered Agent.org ($199), in that order. You will work through 7 stages and pay Georgia $110 to file; later comes the annual registration every year.

Advice from the Founder Mentor Guide mentors

Read this first

Formation fee
$110
We pulled this from sos.ga.gov in October 2026
Annual registration
$60 a year
Calendar note, straight from the state: April 1
State fees over three years
$230
Service fees not counted
Stages
7
Each one explained

You will walk away able to

  • The official Georgia fee and form
  • What the agent rule says
  • How to stay in good standing
  • The services at the top of the list

Our shortlist for Georgia

Cost over three years leads, then work taken off your desk, year-two price, Georgia fit and honest pricing (scoring page).

Our call

1. Mainstay Filing: best for no annual registration to worry about

Best overall$199 yearly plus the $110 state fee

Mainstay Filing takes first place, and the reason is that $199 yearly buys formation, registered agent and annual registration together, so you carry no surprise bills at renewal.

Next to Georgia Registered Agent.co the three-year premium is $200, which the 32% weight on work taken off your desk outweighs.

The annual registration is part of the job, and Georgia's $60 fee is billed to you at cost.

What you get

  • Filing made with the state
  • Registered agent all year long
  • Annual registration filed for you
  • The EIN application comes with it
  • State fee passed through at cost

What works

  • The renewal stays at $199
  • $199 per year for the whole package
  • Your EIN application gets filed too

What to watch

  • Georgia Registered Agent.co renews for $100 less
Visit Mainstay FilingPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.

Our call

2. Georgia Registered Agent.co: best for Georgia LLCs working to a budget

In-state serviceFormation $199, renewal $99 a year

Georgia Registered Agent.co is a solid second: expect $199 for the formation on top of state fees, and $99 when the agent renews.

Set time aside for the annual registration every year; the price leaves it out.

What you get

  • Filing made with the state
  • A year of agent service comes with the price

What works

  • A small $99 renewal
  • $199 to form
  • No agent fee in year one

What to watch

  • No annual registration service is on offer
  • The EIN application is $99 extra
Visit Georgia Registered Agent.coPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.

Our call

3. GA Registered Agent.org: best for owners happy to do their own reports

In-state serviceFormation $199, renewal $99 a year

GA Registered Agent.org is a solid third: expect $199 for the formation on top of state fees, and $99 when the agent renews.

Set time aside for the annual registration every year; the price leaves it out.

Its prices are identical to Georgia Registered Agent.co's, so either is fine on cost.

What you get

  • Filing made with the state
  • A year of agent service comes with the price

What works

  • A small $99 renewal
  • $199 to form
  • No agent fee in year one

What to watch

  • No annual registration service is on offer
  • The EIN application is $99 extra
Visit GA Registered Agent.orgPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.

3 services, compared

#ServiceFirst yearFrom year twoThree-year total
1Mainstay Filing$199$199/yr$597Visit Mainstay FilingPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
2Georgia Registered Agent.co$199$99/yr$397Visit Georgia Registered Agent.coPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
3GA Registered Agent.org$199$99/yr$397Visit GA Registered Agent.orgPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
Listed prices, viewed November 13, 2026. Georgia's $110 fee is still owed in every row.

The stages

  1. Stage 1

    Search for your name before you fall in love with it

    Do your name search at the Georgia Secretary of State. Finding a clash now beats a rejected Georgia filing later.

    Decide on a plan B name in case the first is gone.

  2. Stage 2

    Decide who will act as a registered agent

    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.

    Each service we recommend covers the registered agent role.

    Check it yourself: We pulled this from sos.ga.gov in October 2026

  3. Stage 3

    Pick your route

    You could file for $110 and be done, or add $199 and let one of our picks handle it.

  4. Stage 4

    The paper to file is the Articles of Organization

    This is the stage that makes the company real. Hand the Articles of Organization (Form CD 030) to the Georgia Secretary of State and pay $110 (O.C.G.A. § 14-11-203); you are filing under Georgia law.

    Check it yourself: We pulled this from sos.ga.gov in October 2026

  5. Stage 5

    Order a federal tax ID for the LLC

    EINs come from the IRS, not Georgia. Apply after approval and hand the number to your bank. Mainstay Filing prepares the EIN application inside its package.

  6. Stage 6

    Put your ownership deal on paper

    Treat the operating agreement as the owners' rulebook. Keep a copy; no one at the state will ask for it.

  7. Stage 7

    Mark the dates that come back around

    Keep the LLC active by sending in the annual registration every year ($60) before April 1. The penalty for lateness is $25.

    Check it yourself: We pulled this from sos.ga.gov in October 2026

What each stage costs in Georgia

What forReceiverSum
Forming the LLCState office$110
Annual registrationState office$60 every year
Missing the deadlineState office$25
A filing service (optional)Your service$199 to start
Three-year state totalState office$230
Here is how the three-year state row is built: filing fee, then the report in each of years two and three, then any yearly minimum tax. Service fees get their own rows.

Why the list runs this way

edged out on work taken off your desk, which counts for 32%.

In Georgia the annual registration comes around every year, so a price that files it for you beat a cheaper one that does not.

Georgia questions

Which fees does Georgia charge when an LLC is formed?

$110, paid to the state. Service fees on our list run $199.

Which form creates the LLC?

Stage 4 shows you how to fill out the Articles of Organization (Form CD 030) and where it goes: the Georgia Secretary of State.

Is a registered agent required?

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

What does Georgia require each year?

Once a year the LLC sends in its annual registration and pays $60, due April 1.

Can I form the LLC without a service?

A service is optional. Owners can file by paying the $110 fee as long as they appoint a registered agent.

Which LLC service should a first-time founder use?

Phone Mainstay Filing, because it wraps the filing, your registered agent and the annual registration into $199 a year, and the renewal does not budge from $199. After that come Georgia Registered Agent.co and GA Registered Agent.org.

Where we got the facts

  1. Where the Georgia Secretary of State fee schedule Rev. 8/2025 advice comes from: sos.ga.gov, viewed October 2026.
  2. Where the Georgia report due date advice comes from: law.justia.com, viewed August 2026.
  3. Where the Georgia Secretary of State Corporations Division fee schedule advice comes from: sos.ga.gov, viewed October 2026.
  4. Where the Georgia registered agent statute advice comes from: sos.ga.gov, viewed October 2026.
  5. Mainstay Filing: Georgia service page, opened November 13, 2026
  6. Georgia Registered Agent.co: pricing page, opened November 13, 2026
  7. GA Registered Agent.org: pricing page, opened November 13, 2026