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LLC 101 Guide

Unit 1 · Illinois

Starting an LLC in Illinois (2026): 7 Tasks and the 3 Best LLC Services

Our 2026 Illinois picks for setting up an LLC, strongest to weakest, are Mainstay Filing ($199), Illinois Registered Agent.co ($199) and IL Registered Agent.org ($199). 7 tasks make up the unit; the state's own price tag is $150, and the Limited Liability Company Annual Report adds $75.

Prepared by the LLC 101 Guide instructors

Read this first

Fee to form
$150
ilsos.gov (page read October 2026)
Limited Liability Company Annual Report
$75 a year
Filing window as stated: before the first day of the entity's anniversary month
State cost, years 1 to 3
$300
State charges only
Task count
7
Listed below

You will leave able to

  • How setting up an LLC works in Illinois
  • What the agent rule says
  • What happens once the LLC exists
  • Which services we recommend and why

Services we recommend in Illinois

Five weighted criteria set the order (see how we grade), and three-year cost and assignments completed count most.

Top of the class

1. Mainstay Filing: best for skipping the annual report paperwork

Top of the class$199 yearly plus the $150 state fee

Start the list with Mainstay Filing, because $199 a year hands over three assignments at once: the filing, the registered agent and the annual report.

Against Illinois Registered Agent.co the three-year premium is $200, outweighed by the 31% weight on assignments completed.

You never file the Limited Liability Company Annual Report yourself, and only the $75 state fee is added.

What the price covers

  • The formation filing
  • Registered agent for the whole year
  • Annual report filed for you on time
  • The EIN application is part of the price
  • No markup on the state fee

What works

  • $199 every year
  • $199 per year for the whole package
  • No extra charge for the EIN application

What to weigh

  • After year one it costs $100 more each year
Visit Mainstay FilingPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.

Top of the class

2. Illinois Registered Agent.co: best for a small first bill

Focused on Illinois$199 to open, $99 a year after year one

Our second choice, Illinois Registered Agent.co: forming the Illinois LLC runs $199 with the agent covered in year one, and the agent renews at $99.

The Limited Liability Company Annual Report falls outside the price.

What the price covers

  • Formation paperwork handled
  • A year of agent service is part of the price

What works

  • $199 and the state fee
  • Year-one agent service costs nothing extra
  • Then $99 per year

What to weigh

  • The Limited Liability Company Annual Report remains your responsibility
  • Help with the EIN is $99 more
Visit Illinois Registered Agent.coPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.

Top of the class

3. IL Registered Agent.org: best for a local filer

Focused on Illinois$199 to open, $99 a year after year one

Our third choice, IL Registered Agent.org: forming the Illinois LLC runs $199 with the agent covered in year one, and the agent renews at $99.

The Limited Liability Company Annual Report falls outside the price.

Its prices are the same as Illinois Registered Agent.co's, so either works.

What the price covers

  • Formation paperwork handled
  • A year of agent service is part of the price

What works

  • $199 and the state fee
  • Year-one agent service costs nothing extra
  • Then $99 per year

What to weigh

  • The Limited Liability Company Annual Report remains your responsibility
  • Help with the EIN is $99 more
Visit IL Registered Agent.orgPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.

All the prices in one table

#ServiceFirst yearFrom year twoThree-year total
1Mainstay Filing$199$199/yr$597Visit Mainstay FilingPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
2Illinois Registered Agent.co$199$99/yr$397Visit Illinois Registered Agent.coPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
3IL Registered Agent.org$199$99/yr$397Visit IL Registered Agent.orgPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
Taken from each company's price page on November 13, 2026. None of the rows includes the $150 state fee.

The tasks

  1. Task 1

    Pick a name and see whether it is free

    If another Illinois company already has your name, the filing can come back rejected, so run a search at the Illinois Secretary of State first.

    Keep a second choice in your pocket.

  2. Task 2

    Line up a registered agent

    Every LLC must name a registered agent with an in-state street address. An Illinois resident, or a business authorized to do business in Illinois. The LLC cannot act as its own agent.

    The address has to be a registered office in Illinois that matches the agent's business office. A P.O. box alone is not accepted.

    This role comes with each recommended service.

    Source: ilga.gov (page read October 2026)

  3. Task 3

    File on your own, or get help

    You can file yourself for $150, or pay $199 more for a service. Our recommended services sit at the top of this unit.

  4. Task 4

    Put together the Articles of Organization

    What you need: the Articles of Organization (Form LLC-5.5), $150, and an address at the Illinois Secretary of State to send it to; see 805 ILCS 180/5-5.

    Source: ilsos.gov (page read October 2026)

  5. Task 5

    Get an EIN

    Wait for the state's approval, then request an EIN so the LLC can open accounts under its own name. Mainstay Filing's yearly price already includes this application.

  6. Task 6

    Put the ownership rules on paper

    An operating agreement says who owns the Illinois LLC and how decisions get made. It stays in your records and is not sent to the state.

  7. Task 7

    Get ready for year two and beyond

    Illinois wants the Limited Liability Company Annual Report every year, due before the first day of the entity's anniversary month, with a fee of $75. Miss the deadline and $100 is added.

    Source: ilsos.gov (page read October 2026)

What this unit costs

EntryPaid toSum
Setting up the LLCPaid to the state$150
Limited Liability Company Annual ReportPaid to the state$75 every year
If the report is latePaid to the state$100
Service fees (optional)Service$199 in year one
Three-year state totalPaid to the state$300
State amounts come from Illinois's official fee schedules (see the sources below); service prices come from each company's site. The three-year state total adds the filing, the reports for years two and three and any minimum tax.

How the grades came out

Assignments the price completes settled first place in Illinois. It is worth 31% of the grade, and the other 69% comes from course fee across three years, second-year fee, match with the state syllabus and plain pricing.

Illinois wants the Limited Liability Company Annual Report every year, so a price that files it beat a lower price that leaves it to you.

Illinois questions

How much does Illinois charge to set up an LLC?

$150, paid to the state. Hire a service and add $199.

Which form creates the LLC?

The Articles of Organization (Form LLC-5.5), which you send to the Illinois Secretary of State.

Is a registered agent required?

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

What does Illinois require each year?

What repeats is the Limited Liability Company Annual Report ($75, every year, due before the first day of the entity's anniversary month).

Can I form the LLC without a service?

You may. File alone for $150 and line up a registered agent as well.

Which LLC service should a first-time founder use?

Go with Mainstay Filing: the yearly $199 replaces three separate bills (formation, registered agent, annual report) with a single one. Then Illinois Registered Agent.co and IL Registered Agent.org.

Reading list and sources

  1. Want proof for what the unit says about Illinois Secretary of State, Department of Business Services? Go to ilsos.gov; the copy we used dates from August 2026.
  2. Want proof for what the unit says about Illinois Secretary of State, Department of Business Services? Go to ilsos.gov; the copy we used dates from August 2026.
  3. Want proof for what the unit says about 805 ILCS 180/5-5? Go to ilga.gov; the copy we used dates from August 2026.
  4. Want proof for what the unit says about Illinois formation fee: Filing fee, official source? Go to ilga.gov; the copy we used dates from October 2026.
  5. Want proof for what the unit says about Illinois formation fee: Filing fee, official source? Go to ilsos.gov; the copy we used dates from October 2026.
  6. Want proof for what the unit says about Illinois registered agent statute? Go to ilga.gov; the copy we used dates from October 2026.
  7. Figures from Mainstay Filing's Illinois service page, November 13, 2026
  8. Figures from Illinois Registered Agent.co's pricing page, November 13, 2026
  9. Figures from IL Registered Agent.org's pricing page, November 13, 2026