ZenBusiness Review 2026: Comprehensive Business Formation Services But Beware Fees
ZenBusiness is an online legal service that helps business owners form their business and ensure ongoing compliance. It offers a range of services and three pricing tiers, including a free one. But be mindful of auto-renewal fees and ancillary fees that add up.
Karrin Sehmbi is an editor and content strategist on the small-business team. She has covered small-business software and lending since 2022 and has more than sixteen years of editorial experience in the fields of educational publishing, content marketing and medical news. She has also held roles as a teacher and a tutor.
Karrin Sehmbi is an editor and content strategist on the small-business team. She has covered small-business software and lending since 2022 and has more than sixteen years of editorial experience in the fields of educational publishing, content marketing and medical news. She has also held roles as a teacher and a tutor.
Sally Lauckner has over a decade of experience in print and online journalism. Before joining NerdWallet, Sally was the editorial director at Fundera, where she built and led a team focused on small-business content. Her prior experience includes two years as a senior editor at SmartAsset, where she edited a wide range of personal finance content, and five years at the AOL Huffington Post Media Group, where she held a variety of editorial roles. She has a master's in journalism from New York University and a bachelor's in English and history from Columbia University. Email: slauckner@nerdwallet.com.
Sally Lauckner has over a decade of experience in print and online journalism. Before joining NerdWallet, Sally was the editorial director at Fundera, where she built and led a team focused on small-business content. Her prior experience includes two years as a senior editor at SmartAsset, where she edited a wide range of personal finance content, and five years at the AOL Huffington Post Media Group, where she held a variety of editorial roles. She has a master's in journalism from New York University and a bachelor's in English and history from Columbia University. Email: slauckner@nerdwallet.com.
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Karrin Sehmbi is an editor and content strategist on the small-business team. She has covered small-business software and lending since 2022 and has more than sixteen years of editorial experience in the fields of educational publishing, content marketing and medical news. She has also held roles as a teacher and a tutor.
Karrin Sehmbi is an editor and content strategist on the small-business team. She has covered small-business software and lending since 2022 and has more than sixteen years of editorial experience in the fields of educational publishing, content marketing and medical news. She has also held roles as a teacher and a tutor.
Sally Lauckner has over a decade of experience in print and online journalism. Before joining NerdWallet, Sally was the editorial director at Fundera, where she built and led a team focused on small-business content. Her prior experience includes two years as a senior editor at SmartAsset, where she edited a wide range of personal finance content, and five years at the AOL Huffington Post Media Group, where she held a variety of editorial roles. She has a master's in journalism from New York University and a bachelor's in English and history from Columbia University. Email: slauckner@nerdwallet.com.
Sally Lauckner has over a decade of experience in print and online journalism. Before joining NerdWallet, Sally was the editorial director at Fundera, where she built and led a team focused on small-business content. Her prior experience includes two years as a senior editor at SmartAsset, where she edited a wide range of personal finance content, and five years at the AOL Huffington Post Media Group, where she held a variety of editorial roles. She has a master's in journalism from New York University and a bachelor's in English and history from Columbia University. Email: slauckner@nerdwallet.com.
NerdWallet's content is
fact-checked for accuracy, timeliness, and relevance by humans.
It undergoes a thorough review process involving writers and editors to ensure
the information is as clear and complete as possible. Learn more by checking
our
Editorial Guidelines.
Content was accurate at the time of publication.
Why trust NerdWallet
250+ small-business products reviewed and rated by our team of experts.
80+ years of combined experience covering small business and personal finance.
NerdWallet's small-business content, including ratings, recommendations and reviews, is overseen by a team of writers and editors who specialize in business lending. Their work has appeared in The Associated Press, The Washington Post, MarketWatch, Nasdaq, Entrepreneur, ABC News, MSN and other national and local media outlets. Each writer and editor follows NerdWallet's strict guidelines for editorial integrity to ensure accuracy and fairness in our coverage.
Advertiser disclosure
You're our first priority.
Every time.
We believe everyone should be able to make financial decisions with
confidence. While we don’t cover every company or financial product on
the market, we work hard to share a wide range of offers and objective
editorial perspectives.
So how do we make money? Our partners compensate us for advertisements
that appear on our site. This compensation helps us provide tools and
services - like free credit score access and monitoring. With the
exception of mortgage, home equity and other home-lending products or
services, partner compensation is one of several factors that may affect
which products we highlight and where they appear on our site. Other
factors include your credit profile, product availability and
proprietary website methodologies.
However, these factors do not influence our editors’ opinions or ratings, which are based on independent research and analysis. Our partners cannot
pay us to guarantee favorable reviews.
Here is a list of our partners.
Many or all of the products on this page are from partners who compensate us
when you click to or take an action on their website, but this does not
influence our evaluations or ratings. Our opinions are our own.
ZenBusiness
The bottom line:
ZenBusiness is an all-inclusive online legal service that can help you form your LLC, S corporation or C corporation. Plus, it can help you stay on top of compliance. But its monthly subscription model and add-on services are on the pricier side.
Software details
Starting at
$0
(plus state filing fees).
Promotion
50% off worry-free compliance
for 1 year with the Starter package.
Pros & Cons
Pros
All-inclusive business formation.
Variety of add-on products.
Alerts for recurring filing deadlines.
Cons
Pricey compared with some competitors.
Packages auto-renew yearly vs. a one-time fee.
Deciding which business structure will best suit your needs is a crucial step when starting a company. This determines how your business will be taxed and your level of liability, among other things. Once you’re ready to form your business, you’ll need to gather and file specific documentation with your state. ZenBusiness can help make the process easier through its three filing plans and add-on services.
ZenBusiness is best for businesses that:
Need quick and simple business formation. If you’re looking to start your first business, you may feel a bit overwhelmed by the formation process and required paperwork. ZenBusiness can get you legally operating in a short amount of time for only the cost of your state’s formation fees. If you’re considering some of the other services the company offers, though, you can find less expensive options among the competition.
Don’t mind paying for convenience. Business owners who are happy to pay a higher price for someone else to manage the legal and compliance aspects of their business may appreciate the convenience of ZenBusiness’s annual subscriptions. Fees can add up quickly, though, so review the offerings closely and be sure you actually need the included services.
Don’t need legal support. While ZenBusiness has an array of offerings for business formation and ongoing support, legal counsel is not one of them. Competitors such as Rocket Lawyer and LegalZoom may be a better fit for complex business structures or high-risk industries.
ZenBusiness pricing and services
ZenBusiness offers three service tiers that vary by features and price. You can also opt-in for certain services at an extra cost while remaining on a lower-priced plan.
Here’s a breakdown of the service packages that ZenBusiness offers:
ZenBusiness LLC formation plans
Package
Pricing
Services
Starter
$0 (plus state filing fees).
Standard processing (7-10 business days).
Compliance alerts.
Discounted ($99) worry-free compliance for first year, then $199 annually after that.
Mobile app.
Free online branding tools for first month, then $15 monthly after that.
Lifetime customer support via chat, phone and email.
Pro
$199 billed annually (plus state filing fees).
Everything in Starter package plus:
Rush processing (1 business day).
Worry-free compliance included.
Employer ID number (EIN).
Operating agreement template.
Logo builder kit.
Free business insurance quote.
Premium
$399 billed annually (plus state filing fees).
Everything in Pro package plus:
24/7 compliance monitoring.
Refunded fees for missed deadlines.
Unlimited amendment filings.
Access to full library of business documents.
Registered agent service.
Business advisor consultation.
ZenBusiness corporation formation plans
Package
Pricing
Services
Starter
$0 (plus state filing fees).
Standard processing (7-10 business days).
Compliance alerts.
One free year of worry-free compliance, then $199 annually after that.
Online dashboard.
Customer support via chat, phone and email.
Pro
$199 billed annually (plus state filing fees).
Everything in Starter package plus:
Rush processing (1 business day).
Worry-free compliance included.
Corporate bylaws template.
Employer ID number (EIN).
Premium
$299 billed annually (plus state filing fees).
Everything in Pro package plus:
Access to full library of business document templates.
AI website builder.
Domain name and business email address.
Personalized guidance from premium support team.
Add-on services
You may also choose to buy additional services to supplement a lower-tier plan without paying for services you don’t need. These include:
Amendment filing: $100 (plus state fees).
Annual report filing: $100 (plus state fees).
Business document template library: $99.
Business email address: $25 per year.
Business website builder: $129 per year.
Certificate of good standing: $100 (plus state fees).
Registered agent service: $99 (plus state fees) for the first year; renews at $199 per year.
Worry-free compliance: $199 per year.
Where ZenBusiness stands out
All-inclusive business formation service
ZenBusiness makes the business formation process straightforward. The company provides business owners everything they need to get their new business registered with their state.
ZenBusiness also offers a bookkeeping tool, a business bank account and a business tax service along with branding and marketing tools.
Free formation plan
ZenBusiness has a free formation plan, which covers the basic filing requirements to legally form an LLC or corporation. Business owners pay only their state’s filing fees with this package. Owners then have the option of paying for add-on services, like an EIN or operating agreement, as needed.
ZenBusiness is not unique in its free plan offering. Bizee and Swyft Filings also offer one. Plus Swyft Filings, like ZenBusiness, includes lifetime customer support even in the free package.
Compliance alerts
ZenBusiness provides compliance alerts to help business owners keep track of filing deadlines. Unlike competitors such as Bizee and Swyft Filings, ZenBusiness offers these alerts in all its subscription plans, even its free one.
If you’re particularly concerned about remaining compliant, you can pay for ZenBusiness’s full worry-free compliance service or enroll in one of the paid plans to gain access to these features.
Where ZenBusiness falls short
Pricey compared with competition
ZenBusiness includes a range of features that may not be helpful for all business owners. These include an AI website builder tool, a logo builder kit or the company’s proprietary bookkeeping platform. These offerings may be more affordable elsewhere.
The fees ZenBusiness charges for things like filing an EIN or serving as a registered agent are higher than competitors like Bizee and Swyft Filings.
🤓
Nerdy Tip
You can apply for an EIN for free through the IRS website. There are several benefits to having an EIN, even if you don’t have employees. You’ll likely need this number when opening a business bank account, applying for a business credit card or applying for a business loan.
Recurring fees and auto-renewal subscription model
ZenBusiness bills its paid plans annually, which means you’re paying repeatedly for several items you’ll only need once, for example:
Your initial business filings.
Getting an EIN.
Drafting an operating agreement.
Bizee, though, only charges a one-time fee for its paid plans, which include most of the same offerings.
ZenBusiness subscriptions also auto-renew, so you could end up paying for these services for a lot longer than you intended to. And ZenBusiness sneaks in other auto-renewing costs, like discounted worry-free compliance with the free plan. You can sign up to have it for $99 for the first year, but then it will auto-renew at $199 per year after that. The company also appears to include its Money Pro bookkeeping tool in all three of its plans. This has a separate monthly fee of $30. ZenBusiness also gives you a free month of access to its online branding tools, but then auto-bills you $15 per month after that.
Bizee (formerly Incfile) is another online legal service offering many of the same services as ZenBusiness. Bizee also offers three plan options, including a free one. But its highest-tier package costs $100 less than ZenBusiness’s. Plus, Bizee only charges its plan fees once, whereas ZenBusiness charges annually on an auto-renewal subscription model.
Like ZenBusiness, Bizee offers a la carte services and filings so you can choose to pay for what you need most. But unlike ZenBusiness, Bizee doesn’t have a mobile app or bookkeeping tool. And it only offers lifetime customer support with its paid plans.
LegalZoom provides an array of business formation services for both LLCs and corporations, as well as business operation and intellectual property services. It also provides free templates for various legal forms and agreements.
But one key thing you’ll get with LegalZoom that you won’t with ZenBusiness is access to a business attorney. LegalZoom offers a paid plan for access to ongoing legal support, including attorney consultations and review of legal documents.
Swyft Filings
Swyft Filings is another business formation service provider with similar offerings to ZenBusiness. It, too, offers three plans, ranging from $0 to $269 plus state filing fees. And it also lets you choose a la carte services as needed, generally at a lower price point than ZenBusiness.
But unlike both ZenBusiness and Bizee, Swyft Filings offers a legal bundle that you can trial for free with any of the packages. Swyft’s legal offerings include a library of more than 250 legal and business templates, access to a local business attorney, legal review of documents and more.
Learn more