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Founder Mentor Guide

Walkthrough 1 · Indiana

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

My advice for 2026: when forming an LLC in Indiana, start with Indiana Registered Agent.co ($199), Mainstay Filing ($199) and IN Registered Agent.org ($199), best first. You will work through 7 stages and pay Indiana $95 to file; later comes the business entity report every two years.

Advice from the Founder Mentor Guide mentors

What to know before you start

Cost to form
$95
Official page: forms.in.gov (viewed August 2026)
Business entity report
$32 every 2 years
Official timing, quoted: last day of the entity's anniversary month, every 2 years
What the state collects in three years
$127
State charges only
How many stages
7
Listed below

What you will get from this walkthrough

  • The Indiana fee for a new LLC and the office that receives the filing
  • What the agent rule says
  • What comes back around every year
  • Which services we recommend and why

The Indiana call list

Five weighted criteria set the order (see how we score), and three-year cost and work taken off your desk count most.

Our call

1. Indiana Registered Agent.co: best for Indiana LLCs working to a budget

Start with this one$199 to start, $99 a year after year one

Start with Indiana Registered Agent.co; the formation costs $199, and each later year of agent service is $99.

Its three-year total is under Mainstay Filing's, which earns first place because cost carries 32%.

Set time aside for the business entity report every two years; 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
  • A $199 formation fee
  • A free first agent year

What to watch

  • The price leaves out the business entity report
  • Help with the EIN is $99 more
Visit Indiana Registered Agent.coPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.

Our call

2. Mainstay Filing: best for one bill for filing and upkeep

Any state$199 a year, renewing at $199

Pick number 2 is Mainstay Filing, where the one yearly fee, $199, takes three jobs off your plate: filing, registered agent and business entity report.

Indiana Registered Agent.co comes in $200 cheaper across three years, enough to keep this one out of first.

It files every business entity report for you; the only extra is the state's own $32.

What you get

  • Formation filing prepared and sent
  • Registered agent all year long
  • Business entity report filed for you
  • The EIN application comes with it
  • No markup on the state fee

What works

  • No jump at renewal ($199)
  • It prepares your EIN application as well
  • $199 a year for filing, agent and report

What to watch

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

Our call

3. IN Registered Agent.org: best for LLCs that never leave Indiana

Local choice$199 to start, $99 a year after year one

IN Registered Agent.org is a solid third: the formation costs $199, and each later year of agent service is $99.

Set time aside for the business entity report every two years; the price leaves it out.

It lists the same prices as Indiana Registered Agent.co.

What you get

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

What works

  • A $199 formation fee
  • A free first agent year
  • A small $99 renewal

What to watch

  • The price leaves out the business entity report
  • Help with the EIN is $99 more
Visit IN Registered Agent.orgPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.

Scores and prices together

#ServiceFirst yearFrom year twoThree-year total
1Indiana Registered Agent.co$199$99/yr$397Visit Indiana Registered Agent.coPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
2Mainstay Filing$199$199/yr$597Visit Mainstay FilingPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
3IN Registered Agent.org$199$99/yr$397Visit IN Registered Agent.orgPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
Each price is copied from the company's own site, opened November 13, 2026. These figures leave out Indiana's $95 fee.

Starting a Indiana LLC, stage by stage

  1. Stage 1

    Settle on the company name

    the Indiana Secretary of State keeps the list of names in use, so check there before you spend time on forms; Indiana may turn down a duplicate.

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

  2. Stage 2

    Choose a registered agent

    Every LLC must name a registered agent with an in-state street address. An individual, a general partnership, an Indiana filing entity, or a foreign entity registered in Indiana. A business cannot serve as its own agent.

    The address has to be a physical street address in Indiana. P.O. boxes are not accepted.

    Our recommended services all work as a registered agent.

    Check it yourself: Official page: faqs.in.gov (viewed October 2026)

  3. Stage 3

    Decide whether to do it yourself

    Either way you pay Indiana $95. The services we recommend charge $199 more to do the work.

  4. Stage 4

    The paper to file is the Articles of Organization Domestic Limited Liability Company

    The Articles of Organization Domestic Limited Liability Company (Form State Form 49459) is the key document. It goes to the Indiana Secretary of State, the fee is $95.

    Check it yourself: Official page: forms.in.gov (viewed August 2026)

  5. Stage 5

    Ask the IRS for an EIN

    Once the state says yes, apply to the IRS for the LLC's federal tax ID. A proper business account is hard to open without it. The Mainstay Filing yearly price already covers this stage.

  6. Stage 6

    Write an operating agreement

    The operating agreement is where the owners of a Indiana LLC write down who owns what and how they decide things. You keep it with the company records; the state never sees it.

  7. Stage 7

    Prepare for next year

    Every other year you submit the business entity report and pay $32; the cutoff is last day of the entity's anniversary month, every 2 years.

    Check it yourself: Official page: forms.in.gov (viewed August 2026)

Indiana costs by stage

What forPaid toPrice
Formation feeState office$95
Business entity reportState office$32 every two years
Service, if you hire oneThe service company$199 at the start
Three-year state totalState office$127
Add the filing fee, two later reports and any minimum tax and you have the state's three-year total. The pages listed below show where each figure came from.

How we scored the Indiana picks

On three-year bill (32% of the score) finished first, with right behind.

Indiana Registered Agent.co wins the cost score at $397 over three years, against $200 more at Mainstay Filing.

Indiana questions answered

How much will Indiana charge me to start an LLC?

The state's fee is $95. Paying a service raises the first-year bill by $199.

Which form creates the LLC?

The Articles of Organization Domestic Limited Liability Company (Form State Form 49459) creates the company, and the Indiana Secretary of State is who gets it.

Is a registered agent required?

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

What does Indiana require each year?

What comes back around is the business entity report ($32, every two years, due last day of the entity's anniversary month, every 2 years).

Can I form the LLC without a service?

Nothing stops you. Indiana wants $95, and the LLC has to name a registered agent, which you can be or hire.

Which LLC service should a first-time founder use?

Indiana Registered Agent.co, Mainstay Filing and IN Registered Agent.org, from the top score to the lowest.

Where we got the facts

  1. Backing for Indiana Secretary of State, Business Services Division: inbiz.in.gov, August 2026.
  2. Backing for Indiana Secretary of State, Business Services Division: forms.in.gov, August 2026.
  3. Backing for Indiana report due date: law.justia.com, August 2026.
  4. Backing for Ind: forms.in.gov, August 2026.
  5. Backing for Indiana registered agent statute: faqs.in.gov, October 2026.
  6. Indiana Registered Agent.co pricing page; prices copied November 13, 2026
  7. Mainstay Filing Indiana service page; prices copied November 13, 2026
  8. IN Registered Agent.org pricing page; prices copied November 13, 2026