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LLC 101 Guide

Course unit 2 · Pennsylvania

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

For naming a registered agent in Pennsylvania in 2026, this unit puts Mainstay Filing ($149 a year), Pennsylvania Registered Agent.co ($99 a year) and PA Registered Agent.org ($99 a year) at the top of the class, in that order. Over 6 tasks you learn the legal rule, who is eligible, the address test and the way an agent gets named.

Prepared by the LLC 101 Guide instructors

Key facts for this unit

The requirement
Read the rule
Official page legis.state.pa.us, last read October 2026
What recommended services charge
$99 to $149 a year
Read from each company's price page
Annual report
$7 a year
Official page pa.gov, last read October 2026
How many tasks
6
In order

By the end you will know

  • The Pennsylvania agent rule
  • Who is eligible and the address test
  • Recording the agent
  • How the picks compare

If you want someone else to file

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 companies working in several states

Our first pick$149 per year (renews at $149)

Start the list with Mainstay Filing, because a $149 yearly agent fee that is identical across all fifty states.

Pennsylvania Registered Agent.co is $150 lower across three years; this service still ranks higher because it does more of the work.

What the price covers

  • A registered office in Pennsylvania
  • 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

  • The same provider anywhere
  • Price $149; renews at $149

What to weigh

  • $50 more a year than the local pick
  • Agent service and nothing more
Visit Mainstay FilingPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.

Top of the class

2. Pennsylvania Registered Agent.co: best for one-state companies

Local choice$99 per year (renews at $99)

Pennsylvania Registered Agent.co is a solid second-place option: a one-state plan at $99 a year, renewing at $99.

What the price covers

  • An in-state office address
  • Online copies of legal papers

What works

  • $99 per year
  • A smaller yearly bill than Mainstay Filing

What to weigh

  • No help in other states
  • You finish the annual report on your own
Visit Pennsylvania Registered Agent.coPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.

Top of the class

3. PA Registered Agent.org: best for a local alternative

Local choice$99 per year (renews at $99)

PA Registered Agent.org is a solid third-place option: a one-state plan at $99 a year, renewing at $99.

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

What the price covers

  • An in-state office address
  • Online copies of legal papers

What works

  • A smaller yearly bill than Mainstay Filing
  • $99 per year

What to weigh

  • No help in other states
  • You finish the annual report on your own
Visit PA Registered Agent.orgPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.

The Pennsylvania picks compared

#ServiceAnnual priceRenewal priceThree-year total
1Mainstay Filing$149$149/yr$447Visit Mainstay FilingPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
2Pennsylvania Registered Agent.co$99$99/yr$297Visit Pennsylvania Registered Agent.coPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
3PA Registered Agent.org$99$99/yr$297Visit PA Registered Agent.orgPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
Prices come from each company's own site, opened November 13, 2026. Switching agents does not change what the state charges.

The tasks

  1. Task 1

    Read what Pennsylvania requires

    Pennsylvania requires a registered office (a Pennsylvania street address or a Commercial Registered Office Provider), not an agent.

    Source: Official page legis.state.pa.us, last read October 2026

  2. Task 2

    Find out who is allowed to serve

    Pennsylvania does not require a registered agent. Every LLC keeps a registered office instead: an actual street address in Pennsylvania, or a Commercial Registered Office Provider named in its place by a company without a Pennsylvania address. See 15 Pa.C.S. § 8825 for the text.

  3. Task 3

    The address rule

    The address has to be an actual street address or rural route box number in Pennsylvania. A P.O. box alone is not accepted.

    With a service, the public record shows its address instead of yours.

  4. Task 4

    Choose between acting alone and hiring

    If you pass the tests above you can name yourself; hiring one of the recommended agents costs $99 to $149 a year.

  5. Task 5

    Put the agent on the state's record

    A new company names its agent when it files the Certificate of Organization (Form DSCB:15-8821); to replace the agent later, file again with the Pennsylvania Secretary of State.

    Source: Official page pa.gov, last read October 2026

  6. Task 6

    Update when things change

    Each year the annual report confirms the details for $7, by September 30.

    Source: Official page pa.gov, last read October 2026

The bill

What forPaid toTotal
Registered agent serviceThe provider$99 to $149 a year
Agent renewalThe provider$99 to $149 a year
Annual reportPaid to the state$7 every year
The state numbers are official Pennsylvania fees, sourced below. The three-year line combines the filing fee, the reports in years two and three and any minimum tax.

Why the list runs this way

Assignments the price completes makes up 31% of the grade, and that is where got ahead in Pennsylvania.

One agent for any state beat the one-state plan.

Common questions

Does a Pennsylvania LLC have to have a registered agent?

Pennsylvania requires a registered office (a Pennsylvania street address or a Commercial Registered Office Provider), not an agent.

Can I be my own registered agent?

This state does not make you name one (task 1); if you decide to, tasks 2 and 3 say who is eligible.

Can I change my registered agent later?

Yes, any time. Task 5 explains how to file the change with the Pennsylvania Secretary of State.

What does a registered agent cost in Pennsylvania?

$99 to $149 per year for the agents listed.

What does the LLC pay the state each year?

The yearly item is the annual report, which costs $7.

Which registered agent would you choose?

Go with Mainstay Filing: $149 a year, $149 at renewal, and the same plan works in every other state. Then Pennsylvania Registered Agent.co and PA Registered Agent.org.

Reading list and sources

  1. Want proof for what the unit says about Pennsylvania Department of State, Bureau of Corporations and? Go to pa.gov; the copy we used dates from August 2026.
  2. Want proof for what the unit says about Pennsylvania Department of State, Bureau of Corporations and? Go to pa.gov; the copy we used dates from August 2026.
  3. Want proof for what the unit says about 15 Pa.C.S. § 8821? Go to pa.gov; the copy we used dates from August 2026.
  4. Want proof for what the unit says about Pennsylvania formation fee: Filing fee, official source? Go to pa.gov; the copy we used dates from October 2026.
  5. Want proof for what the unit says about Pennsylvania registered agent statute? Go to legis.state.pa.us; the copy we used dates from October 2026.
  6. We opened the Pennsylvania service page at Mainstay Filing on November 13, 2026
  7. We opened the pricing page at Pennsylvania Registered Agent.co on November 13, 2026
  8. We opened the pricing page at PA Registered Agent.org on November 13, 2026