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Founder Mentor Guide

Walkthrough 1 · Rhode Island

Rhode Island LLC Formation Walkthrough (2026): 8 Stages and the 3 Best LLC Services

If you want help with forming an LLC in Rhode Island in 2026, phone RI Registered Agent.org ($199), Mainstay Filing ($199) and Rhode Island Registered Agent.co ($199), in that order. Expect 8 stages and a $150 state fee, then $50 for the Annual Report for a Limited Liability Company.

Advice from the Founder Mentor Guide mentors

Read this first

State filing fee
$150
Official page: docs.sos.ri.gov (viewed October 2026)
Recurring report
$50 a year
When it falls due: May 1
Minimum tax each year
$400
Official page: tax.ri.gov (viewed October 2026)
Three-year state cost
$1,450
No service fee included
Walkthrough stages
8
One at a time

You will walk away able to

  • Where and how a Rhode Island LLC is filed
  • What the agent rule says
  • How to stay in good standing
  • Our recommendations, with reasons

Who we would phone in Rhode Island

Ranked on the scoring page: three-year cost (32%), work taken off your desk (32%), year-two price, fit with Rhode Island rules and honest pricing.

Our call

1. RI Registered Agent.org: best for a no-frills formation

Top recommendation$199 in year one, $99 after

RI Registered Agent.org is our first call in Rhode Island: the formation costs $199, and each later year of agent service is $99.

Cost settles it: three years here come to less than at Mainstay Filing.

You still send in the Annual Report for a Limited Liability Company every year.

What you get

  • Formation paperwork handled
  • A year of agent service comes with the price

What works

  • First agent year included
  • A $199 formation fee
  • The agent renews at $99

What to watch

  • No Annual Report for a Limited Liability Company service is on offer
  • The EIN application is not included ($99)
Visit RI Registered Agent.orgPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.

Our call

2. Mainstay Filing: best for no annual report to worry about

All fifty states$199 a year, state fee on top

Our second call, Mainstay Filing: the one yearly fee, $199, takes three jobs off your plate: filing, resident agent and annual report.

Across three years it trails RI Registered Agent.org by $200.

It handles the Annual Report for a Limited Liability Company too, adding Rhode Island's $50 at cost.

What you get

  • Formation filing prepared and sent
  • Resident agent all year long
  • Annual report filed for you
  • The EIN application comes with it
  • State fee at cost

What works

  • A flat $199 every year
  • The renewal stays at $199
  • The EIN stage is part of the package

What to watch

  • A yearly premium of $100 over RI Registered Agent.org
Visit Mainstay FilingPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.

Our call

3. Rhode Island Registered Agent.co: best for another Rhode Island option

Rhode Island specialist$199 in year one, $99 after

Rhode Island Registered Agent.co comes in third: the formation costs $199, and each later year of agent service is $99.

You still send in the Annual Report for a Limited Liability Company every year.

RI Registered Agent.org and this service cost the same.

What you get

  • Formation paperwork handled
  • A year of agent service comes with the price

What works

  • The agent renews at $99
  • A $199 formation fee
  • First agent year included

What to watch

  • No Annual Report for a Limited Liability Company service is on offer
  • The EIN application is not included ($99)
Visit Rhode Island Registered Agent.coPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.

3 services, compared

#ServiceFirst yearFrom year twoThree-year total
1RI Registered Agent.org$199$99/yr$397Visit RI Registered Agent.orgPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
2Mainstay Filing$199$199/yr$597Visit Mainstay FilingPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
3Rhode Island Registered Agent.co$199$99/yr$397Visit Rhode Island Registered Agent.coPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
Company prices as listed on November 13, 2026. No row folds in the $150 state fee.

How a Rhode Island LLC gets formed

  1. Stage 1

    Confirm nobody else owns the name

    Whether the name is available is up to the Rhode Island Secretary of State, so that is where you begin.

    A spare name saves you a second search.

  2. Stage 2

    Line up a resident agent

    Every LLC must name a registered agent with an in-state street address. A Rhode Island resident, or a corporation, limited partnership or LLC formed in Rhode Island or authorized there.

    The address has to be a Rhode Island street address, not a P.O. box, where the agent is available during business hours.

    Our recommended services all work as a resident agent.

    Check it yourself: Official page: webserver.rilegislature.gov (viewed October 2026)

  3. Stage 3

    Pick your route

    Skipping the service saves $199; it also means you fill in every form. Our picks are listed in order.

  4. Stage 4

    Get ready the Articles of Organization

    What you need: the Articles of Organization (Form 400), a check or card for $150, and the Rhode Island Secretary of State as the address. For the curious, see R.I. Gen. Laws § 7-16-5.

    Check it yourself: Official page: docs.sos.ri.gov (viewed October 2026)

  5. Stage 5

    Handle Rhode Island's extra requirement

    • $400 a year minimum tax to the Division of Taxation (Form RI-1065), owed whether or not the LLC makes a profit.

    Check it yourself: Official page: tax.ri.gov (viewed October 2026)

  6. Stage 6

    Ask the IRS for an EIN

    With approval in your hands, request an EIN so the LLC can open accounts under its own name. Mainstay Filing prepares the EIN application inside its package.

  7. Stage 7

    Get the owners to sign an agreement

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

  8. Stage 8

    Mark the dates that come back around

    Keep the LLC active by sending in the Annual Report for a Limited Liability Company every year ($50) before May 1. The penalty for lateness is $25. The state also charges a tax: $400 a year minimum tax to the Division of Taxation (Form RI-1065), owed whether or not the LLC makes a profit.

    Check it yourself: Official page: sos.ri.gov (viewed August 2026)

What each stage costs in Rhode Island

ItemWho gets paidTotal
Formation feeThe state$150
Repeating reportThe state$50 every year
Late feeThe state$25
Yearly minimum taxThe state$400 a year
Service fees (optional)The service company$199 for year one
Three years of state feesThe state$1,450
The state rows come from Rhode Island's published fee schedules (the pages we opened are listed under the table), and each service row comes from that company's own price. Across three years the state row counts the filing, the report in year two, the report in year three and any minimum tax.

How the scores came out

Three-year bill makes up 32% of the score, and that is where pulled ahead in Rhode Island.

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

Rhode Island questions answered

What is the price of a Rhode Island LLC filing?

Budget $150 to file. $199 more puts someone else in charge of the filing.

Which form creates the LLC?

The paper you want is the Articles of Organization (Form 400); the Rhode Island Secretary of State receives it.

Is a resident agent required?

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

What does Rhode Island require each year?

Count on Rhode Island wanting the Annual Report for a Limited Liability Company every year, at $50, with timing described as May 1. A yearly minimum tax also applies.

Can I form the LLC without a service?

A service is optional. Owners can file by paying the $150 fee as long as they appoint a resident agent.

Which LLC service should a first-time founder use?

Go with RI Registered Agent.org: $199 to get going, agent service for year one included, then $99 each year. Then Mainstay Filing and Rhode Island Registered Agent.co.

Where we got the facts

  1. Backing for Rhode Island Department of State, Business Services Division: docs.sos.ri.gov, August 2026.
  2. Backing for Rhode Island Department of State, Business Services Division: sos.ri.gov, August 2026.
  3. Backing for R.I: webserver.rilegislature.gov, August 2026.
  4. Backing for Rhode Island formation fee: Filing fee, official source: sos.ri.gov, October 2026.
  5. Backing for Rhode Island formation fee: Filing fee, official source: docs.sos.ri.gov, October 2026.
  6. Backing for Rhode Island registered agent statute: webserver.rilegislature.gov, October 2026.
  7. Backing for Rhode Island other cost: tax.ri.gov, October 2026.
  8. November 13, 2026, pricing page belonging to RI Registered Agent.org
  9. November 13, 2026, Rhode Island service page belonging to Mainstay Filing
  10. November 13, 2026, pricing page belonging to Rhode Island Registered Agent.co