Skip to content
LLC 101 Guide

Unit 2 · Michigan

The Michigan Registered Agent Unit (2026): 6 Tasks and the 3 Best Agents

Ranked for 2026, the services worth hiring for naming a registered agent in Michigan are Mainstay Filing ($149 a year), MI Registered Agent.org ($99 a year) and Michigan Registered Agent.co ($99 a year). The 6 tasks below cover what Michigan requires of a resident agent, who may serve, which address counts and how to put the agent on record.

Prepared by the LLC 101 Guide instructors

Read this first

Needed by law?
Yes
Look it up at legislature.mi.gov; our reading dates from October 2026
Service prices
$99 to $149 a year
From company pricing pages
Annual statement
$25 a year
Look it up at michigan.gov; our reading dates from August 2026
Tasks in this unit
6
One by one

Course objectives

  • What Michigan requires of a resident agent
  • Who is eligible and the address test
  • Getting the agent listed
  • How the picks compare

Services we recommend in Michigan

What counts most: three-year cost and how many assignments the price finishes. How we grade lists all five criteria.

Top of the class

1. Mainstay Filing: best for a nationwide agent under one price

Start with this one$149 a year, unchanged at renewal

Start the list with Mainstay Filing, because an agent for $149 a year who can follow the company wherever it registers next.

Three years run $150 higher than with MI Registered Agent.org, but it completes more of the assignments, and the grade pays for that.

What the price covers

  • A registered office in Michigan
  • Free scans of legal papers served on the company, sent the business day they arrive
  • Up to three government letters a year are scanned free
  • Also works for nonprofits, corporations, LPs and LLPs

What works

  • Good in every state
  • $149 per year

What to weigh

  • Costs $50 extra every year
  • Report filing needs the formation package
Visit Mainstay FilingPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.

Top of the class

2. MI Registered Agent.org: best for LLCs that live only in Michigan

Local choice$99 a year, unchanged at renewal

MI Registered Agent.org takes second place: a one-state plan at $99 a year, renewing at $99.

What the price covers

  • A Michigan address for the registered office
  • Served papers are scanned into your account

What works

  • $99 a year, same at renewal
  • Under Mainstay Filing on price

What to weigh

  • No help in other states
  • Annual statement is outside the price
Visit MI Registered Agent.orgPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.

Top of the class

3. Michigan Registered Agent.co: best for a second local choice

Local choice$99 a year, unchanged at renewal

Michigan Registered Agent.co takes third place: a one-state plan at $99 a year, renewing at $99.

On price, it is level with MI Registered Agent.org.

What the price covers

  • A Michigan address for the registered office
  • Served papers are scanned into your account

What works

  • Under Mainstay Filing on price
  • $99 a year, same at renewal

What to weigh

  • No help in other states
  • Annual statement is outside the price
Visit Michigan Registered Agent.coPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.

All the prices in one table

#ServiceAnnual priceRenewal priceThree-year total
1Mainstay Filing$149$149/yr$447Visit Mainstay FilingPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
2MI Registered Agent.org$99$99/yr$297Visit MI Registered Agent.orgPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
3Michigan Registered Agent.co$99$99/yr$297Visit Michigan Registered Agent.coPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
Taken from each company's price page on November 13, 2026. Every agent leaves the state fees unchanged.

The tasks

  1. Task 1

    Read what Michigan requires

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

    Source: Look it up at legislature.mi.gov; our reading dates from October 2026

  2. Task 2

    Find out who is allowed to serve

    A Michigan resident, or a corporation or LLC formed in Michigan or authorized there, whose business office (or, for a person, residence) is the registered office. (MCL 450.4207)

  3. Task 3

    Pick an address that complies

    The address has to be a registered office in Michigan, which does not have to be the place of business. P.O. boxes are not accepted.

    Paying a service keeps your home address out of public records.

  4. Task 4

    Settle on the person or company

    Qualify and you can serve yourself. A professional from the list runs $99 to $149 per year.

  5. Task 5

    Report the agent's details

    A new company names its agent when it files the Articles of Organization (Form CSCL/CD-700); to replace the agent later, file again with the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA).

    Source: Look it up at legislature.mi.gov; our reading dates from September 2026

  6. Task 6

    Keep the agent record accurate

    Each year the annual statement confirms the details for $25, by February 15. A late filing costs $10.

    Source: Look it up at michigan.gov; our reading dates from August 2026

Michigan agent costs

ItemWho gets paidAmount
Agent serviceThe service$99 to $149 a year
Every year afterThe service$99 to $149 a year
Annual statementPaid to the state$25 every year
State fees were read from the official pages named in the sources. Three years means the filing, two years of reports and the minimum tax where there is one.

How the grades came out

Assignments the price completes settled first place in Michigan. 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.

Covering all fifty states counted for more than MI Registered Agent.org did under our grading.

Short answers

Can a Michigan LLC go without a resident agent?

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

Can I be my own resident agent?

Yes, if you meet the eligibility and address rules in tasks 2 and 3.

Can I change my resident agent later?

Yes; the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) accepts change filings, and task 5 says what to send.

What does a registered agent cost in Michigan?

Our recommended agents charge $99 to $149 a year.

What does the LLC pay the state each year?

Every time, the state collects the annual statement fee of $25.

Which registered agent would you choose?

Mainstay Filing is first, MI Registered Agent.org and Michigan Registered Agent.co follow, and Mainstay Filing wins on assignments the price completes.

Reading list and sources

  1. Reading list entry for Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations: michigan.gov, reread August 2026, the document behind these numbers.
  2. Reading list entry for Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations: michigan.gov, reread August 2026, the document behind these numbers.
  3. Reading list entry for Michigan report due date: michigan.gov, reread August 2026, the document behind these numbers.
  4. Reading list entry for MCL 450.4202: legislature.mi.gov, reread August 2026, the document behind these numbers.
  5. Reading list entry for Michigan formation fee: Filing fee, official source: michigan.gov, reread September 2026, the document behind these numbers.
  6. Reading list entry for Michigan formation fee: Filing fee, official source: legislature.mi.gov, reread September 2026, the document behind these numbers.
  7. Reading list entry for Michigan registered agent statute: legislature.mi.gov, reread October 2026, the document behind these numbers.
  8. Figures from Mainstay Filing's Michigan service page, November 13, 2026
  9. Figures from MI Registered Agent.org's pricing page, November 13, 2026
  10. Figures from Michigan Registered Agent.co's pricing page, November 13, 2026