WEBVTT 00:00:00.157 --> 00:00:06.397 The 5 best registered agents in California in 2026 are Mainstay Filing, Northwest 00:00:06.448 --> 00:00:11.837 Registered Agent, CA Registered Agent.org, Bizee, and 00:00:11.902 --> 00:00:14.397 California Registered Agent.ai. 00:00:14.397 --> 00:00:16.797 This is The Business Formation Podcast. 00:00:16.864 --> 00:00:20.957 Today we're going through all five for California, starting with the price, and then 00:00:20.989 --> 00:00:25.117 what that price turns into at renewal, because that's where a lot of these change. 00:00:25.117 --> 00:00:28.237 Right. Every company on this list leads with a number. 00:00:28.337 --> 00:00:32.877 The question is what that number is in year two, and what comes with it. 00:00:35.414 --> 00:00:38.549 Can my LLC be its own agent in California? 00:00:38.549 --> 00:00:43.589 No. In California your agent has to be an individual who lives in the state or a 00:00:43.640 --> 00:00:47.669 registered corporate agent, and your LLC can't be its own agent. 00:00:47.829 --> 00:00:52.709 An individual agent also needs a California street address, with no P.O. 00:00:52.769 --> 00:00:53.269 box. 00:00:53.269 --> 00:00:55.829 I'm Maya, by the way, here with Dan. 00:00:55.829 --> 00:00:58.069 And I'm Dan. Let's get into it. 00:00:58.069 --> 00:01:03.189 Back up for anyone just starting out: what does a registered agent actually do? 00:01:03.189 --> 00:01:07.589 Your registered agent is the person or company that receives legal papers and 00:01:07.633 --> 00:01:09.989 official state mail for your business. 00:01:10.089 --> 00:01:14.629 Its address goes on the public record, so it has to be a real street address in the 00:01:14.696 --> 00:01:18.549 state, where papers can be handed over during normal business hours. 00:01:18.549 --> 00:01:21.909 And changing agents later, is that a big filing? 00:01:21.909 --> 00:01:27.509 It's a Statement of Information, Form LLC-12, with the California Secretary of 00:01:27.576 --> 00:01:31.109 State. When it's an off-cycle update, there's no fee. 00:01:31.909 --> 00:01:33.188 So, number one. 00:01:33.188 --> 00:01:39.189 Number one is Mainstay Filing: $149 a year for the registered agent, and it renews 00:01:39.242 --> 00:01:46.389 at the same $149. Year one is $149, year two is $149, 00:01:46.437 --> 00:01:49.189 year three is $149. 00:01:49.189 --> 00:01:50.469 What do you get for that? 00:01:50.469 --> 00:01:54.469 It puts its own name on the California public record as your agent, instead of 00:01:54.536 --> 00:01:58.549 yours. Anything served on your company is scanned and uploaded the same business 00:01:58.609 --> 00:02:02.789 day, with no fee. And your first three government mailings each year are scanned 00:02:02.853 --> 00:02:03.189 free. 00:02:03.189 --> 00:02:06.069 Same business day matters if it's a lawsuit, right? 00:02:06.069 --> 00:02:08.189 That's the whole point of an agent. 00:02:08.282 --> 00:02:12.229 If someone sues your company, the deadline to respond generally runs from when the 00:02:12.298 --> 00:02:16.509 papers are served on your agent, not from when you finally open the envelope. 00:02:16.509 --> 00:02:19.109 What if my company already has an agent? 00:02:19.189 --> 00:02:20.309 Is switching a hassle? 00:02:20.309 --> 00:02:25.109 Switching is simple. Mainstay files the change of agent for you, and California 00:02:25.169 --> 00:02:28.069 charges no state fee for an off-cycle change. 00:02:28.069 --> 00:02:29.349 Anything else? 00:02:29.349 --> 00:02:35.269 Mainstay also sends compliance reminders, and it serves LLCs, corporations and 00:02:35.342 --> 00:02:36.548 nonprofits alike. 00:02:37.002 --> 00:02:37.989 Is there a catch? 00:02:37.989 --> 00:02:42.949 The honest one: if all you want is a registered agent at the lowest flat yearly 00:02:43.029 --> 00:02:47.149 price, a couple of names below cost $50 less a year. 00:02:47.205 --> 00:02:52.789 That's $150 over three years. What you get with Mainstay is a price that doesn't 00:02:52.837 --> 00:02:55.829 jump at renewal, and the switch filed for you. 00:02:56.487 --> 00:02:57.287 Number two? 00:02:57.287 --> 00:03:02.807 Number two is Northwest Registered Agent, at $125 a year. 00:03:03.047 --> 00:03:08.807 Its page says that price hasn't changed in 20 years, and it scans up to 10 pieces of 00:03:08.857 --> 00:03:11.207 regular business mail a year for free. 00:03:11.735 --> 00:03:14.727 That sounds hard to beat. What's the catch? 00:03:14.727 --> 00:03:20.727 Signing up automatically enrolls you in its annual report filing service, at $100 00:03:20.807 --> 00:03:24.327 plus state fees per filing, unless you cancel it. 00:03:24.627 --> 00:03:29.847 Its page says you can add or cancel the service at any time, so it's something to 00:03:29.900 --> 00:03:31.367 check right after you sign up. 00:03:31.367 --> 00:03:35.367 So what does a year with Northwest look like if I leave that service on? 00:03:35.367 --> 00:03:42.167 $125 for the agent, plus $100 and the state's fee every time it files your 00:03:42.224 --> 00:03:47.767 annual report. Cancel the service, and it's back to $125 a year. 00:03:47.893 --> 00:03:53.127 Either way, the agent price itself has been steady for a long time, and that counts 00:03:53.167 --> 00:03:53.847 for something. 00:03:54.953 --> 00:03:55.833 Number three. 00:03:55.833 --> 00:04:02.633 Number three is CA Registered Agent.org, at $99 a year, 00:04:02.693 --> 00:04:08.393 and still $99 at renewal. You get same-day scans of state correspondence and service 00:04:08.420 --> 00:04:13.833 of process, plus deadline reminders, and switching to it costs no state fee. 00:04:14.033 --> 00:04:19.753 The catch: annual report filing isn't in the plan; that's a separate service. 00:04:19.753 --> 00:04:22.073 How does that compare with Mainstay? 00:04:22.073 --> 00:04:28.313 It's $50 a year less. Over three years, that's $297 against 00:04:28.393 --> 00:04:35.353 $447 for Mainstay. If a flat $99 is the whole goal, this is one of 00:04:35.373 --> 00:04:36.793 the two names to look at. 00:04:38.233 --> 00:04:39.193 Number four? 00:04:39.193 --> 00:04:43.833 Number four is Bizee, formerly called Incfile. 00:04:44.013 --> 00:04:48.553 Its registered agent is free the first year with any formation package. 00:04:49.369 --> 00:04:51.432 Free? What's the catch? 00:04:51.432 --> 00:04:57.673 Two things. The free year needs a formation order, so you have to form your LLC with 00:04:57.753 --> 00:05:04.633 Bizee to get it. And after that, it's $149 a year, and the renewal is 00:05:04.697 --> 00:05:05.353 automatic. 00:05:05.353 --> 00:05:08.792 So three years with Bizee looks like... 00:05:08.792 --> 00:05:14.313 Free, then $149, then $149: 00:05:14.353 --> 00:05:19.993 $298. That's only if you form with them in the first place. 00:05:20.736 --> 00:05:21.936 And number five? 00:05:21.936 --> 00:05:28.896 Number five is California Registered Agent.ai, at $99 a year, flat, with 00:05:28.949 --> 00:05:34.016 no change at renewal. It covers the address on your filings, same-day scanning of 00:05:34.069 --> 00:05:37.136 court papers and reminders before state deadlines. 00:05:37.296 --> 00:05:42.736 The catch: like number three, filing your annual report is a separate service. 00:05:42.736 --> 00:05:45.856 So numbers three and five are the same price? 00:05:45.856 --> 00:05:51.936 The same $99. Both are worth a look if you want the lowest flat number, and neither 00:05:51.996 --> 00:05:53.376 one changes at renewal. 00:05:54.136 --> 00:05:55.656 A few questions we hear a lot. 00:05:55.776 --> 00:05:59.256 First: what about regular mail, not just legal papers? 00:05:59.256 --> 00:06:04.056 It varies. Mainstay scans the first three government mailings a year free. 00:06:04.160 --> 00:06:08.456 Northwest scans up to 10 pieces of regular business mail a year free. 00:06:08.696 --> 00:06:13.336 If you get a lot of mail at your agent's address, ask what each extra scan costs 00:06:13.382 --> 00:06:14.376 before you sign up. 00:06:14.376 --> 00:06:18.456 I formed my LLC in California but do business in another state. 00:06:18.536 --> 00:06:19.896 Do I need two agents? 00:06:19.896 --> 00:06:23.896 If you register the company to do business in that second state, you'll need an 00:06:23.949 --> 00:06:29.096 agent there too. A price that's the same in every state, like Mainstay's, means 00:06:29.116 --> 00:06:31.776 you're not comparing a new set of numbers each time. 00:06:31.776 --> 00:06:33.576 Can I switch in the middle of the year? 00:06:33.576 --> 00:06:39.256 You can. In California it's a Statement of Information that names the new agent, and 00:06:39.296 --> 00:06:41.976 for an off-cycle update there's no state fee. 00:06:42.104 --> 00:06:45.016 With Mainstay, that filing is done for you. 00:06:45.731 --> 00:06:49.491 If someone's listening and still can't decide, what should they actually compare? 00:06:49.491 --> 00:06:54.211 Three things. First, the renewal price, not the first-year price. 00:06:54.491 --> 00:07:01.411 Bizee goes from free to $149. Second, anything that gets added automatically, 00:07:01.459 --> 00:07:06.851 like Northwest's annual report enrollment at $100 plus state fees per filing. 00:07:07.051 --> 00:07:09.971 And third, what switching costs you. 00:07:10.158 --> 00:07:15.011 In California, the state fee is nothing for an off-cycle update. 00:07:15.011 --> 00:07:17.171 Which brings us back to number one. 00:07:17.171 --> 00:07:22.691 It does. One price, the same at renewal, nothing added automatically, and the switch 00:07:22.784 --> 00:07:23.811 filed for you. 00:07:25.171 --> 00:07:27.571 So, the final verdict for California. 00:07:27.571 --> 00:07:34.451 Mainstay Filing, our pick. $149 a year for the agent, the same at renewal, and 00:07:34.491 --> 00:07:35.811 the switch filed for you. 00:07:35.811 --> 00:07:37.971 And the quick version of all five? 00:07:37.971 --> 00:07:43.731 One, Mainstay Filing: $149 a year, the same at renewal. 00:07:44.031 --> 00:07:50.531 Two, Northwest: $125 a year; watch the annual report enrollment. 00:07:50.744 --> 00:07:56.771 Three, CA Registered Agent.org: $99 a year, flat. 00:07:57.043 --> 00:08:03.891 Four, Bizee: free the first year when you form with it, then $149. 00:08:04.171 --> 00:08:10.771 And five, California Registered Agent.ai: $99 a year, flat. 00:08:10.771 --> 00:08:13.651 Links to all five are in the show notes. 00:08:13.777 --> 00:08:17.091 Thanks for listening to The Business Formation Podcast.