The 5 Best Registered Agents in Massachusetts (2026)

Full transcript

0:00 The short answer

Dan The 5 best registered agents in Massachusetts in 2026 are Mainstay Filing, Northwest Registered Agent, MA Registered Agent.org, Bizee, and Massachusetts Registered Agent.co.

Maya Welcome to The Business Formation Podcast. Massachusetts, which I assume has its own word for the agent?

Dan It does: resident agent. The state charges nothing to change yours online, but the annual report that follows is five hundred dollars, so the agent fee is a small part of the yearly bill.

0:34 The resident agent and the office

Maya What does the law actually require?

Dan Under chapter 156C, every LLC keeps two things in Massachusetts. An office, where its records are kept, and a resident agent for service of process. The office doesn't have to be a place of business.

Maya Who can be the agent?

Dan An individual resident of Massachusetts, a domestic corporation, or a foreign corporation authorized to do business here. The Division's regulation widens that to other business entities that are qualified. There's no age rule that we found.

Maya What about the address?

Dan A street address. The regulation says a post office address is not sufficient. We didn't find an office-hours rule.

Maya Does the agent sign?

Dan The agent's written consent has to be on the certificate or attached to it. The form has the agent say, in effect, I consent to my appointment as resident agent.

Maya I'm Maya, by the way, here with Dan.

Dan Thanks, Maya. The five.

1:37 Mainstay Filing

Maya Number one?

Dan Mainstay Filing: $149 a year, and $149 at renewal.

Maya What do I get?

Dan A Massachusetts address on the public record in place of your own. Papers served on the company are scanned and uploaded the same business day at no fee, and your first three government mailings each year are scanned free.

Maya Is the change complicated?

Dan Mainstay files it for you, and there's no state fee for an online filing.

Maya And the catch?

Dan Cost. Two of the agents below it are $99, so Mainstay doesn't win a pure price contest.

2:16 Northwest Registered Agent

Maya Second.

Dan Northwest Registered Agent, $125 a year. Its page says that price has held for twenty years, and it scans up to ten pieces of routine business mail a year at no cost.

Maya What's the catch?

Dan Automatic enrollment in its annual report filing service, which is $100 plus state fees per filing. You can cancel any time, it says.

Maya And the state fee here is large.

Dan The report is $500, or $520 online. So with the service switched on, it would be $100 on top of that. Know that before you let it run.

2:55 MA Registered Agent.org

Maya Number three?

Dan MA Registered Agent.org: $99 a year, the same at renewal. The office address, scanning of legal correspondence, and reminders for state filings.

Maya And switching?

Dan Costs no state fee, and none from them. Annual report filing is separate.

Maya Versus Mainstay?

Dan $99 against $149 is $50 a year. Across three years, $150.

3:25 Bizee

Maya Four.

Dan Bizee, once called Incfile. The agent is free the first year with a formation package, then $149 a year.

Maya Renewal on its own?

Dan Automatic. Free, then $149, then $149 is $298 for three years, and it requires forming through them.

Maya And if I formed elsewhere?

Dan You skip the free year and start at $149.

3:52 Massachusetts Registered Agent.co

Maya And the fifth?

Dan Massachusetts Registered Agent.co, another flat $99. The address used on filings, same-day scanning of legal mail, and reminders for state deadlines.

Maya Is that any different from number three?

Dan Not that the listings show. Same price, same catch, report filing costs extra.

4:14 The annual report

Maya That $500 report. When is it due?

Dan On or before the anniversary of the date the original certificate was filed. It's $500 by mail, $520 online. Miss two years in a row and you can be dissolved.

Maya Can I change my agent on the annual report?

Dan No. The regulation says the report may amend anything in the certificate except the registered agent or office. Those changes have to go through a statement of change.

Maya So what does a normal year cost?

Dan $520 online plus $149 is $669 with Mainstay. With one of the $99 agents, $520 plus $99 is $619.

Maya What about formation?

Dan The Certificate of Organization is $500 by mail or hand delivery, $520 online. The agent's name and street address are item 5, and the records office is item 2.

5:16 The records office

Maya You said the office is a separate thing. What's it for?

Dan The statute says it's where the records required by section nine are kept. It may be your place of business, but it doesn't have to be.

Maya Why should an owner care?

Dan Because the Division mails its dissolution notices there. If the office address is stale, you miss the notice that starts the clock.

Maya So two addresses to keep current.

Dan The agent's street address and the records office. They can be the same place, and for many small companies they are.

5:46 Doing it yourself

Maya Can I just be my own resident agent?

Dan If you're an individual resident of Massachusetts, yes. The law doesn't set an age or a licence rule.

Maya What's the downside?

Dan Your street address goes on the public record, and a lawsuit lands on your doorstep. You also have to keep the address current, and the annual report can't fix it for you.

Maya And if I travel a lot?

Dan Then the agent being reachable matters more. A service that scans papers the same business day gives you a head start on any deadline.

6:18 Changing the agent

Maya Walk me through the change.

Dan It's the Statement of Change of Resident Agent and Resident Office. Online it's free. On paper or by fax it's $25.

Maya Anything else I should know?

Dan The new agent's written consent has to be set out in the statement. And a fax adds a six-dollar expedite fee.

Maya So online is simply better here.

Dan For the fee, yes. The Division has a File Online link for it.

6:45 If the agent resigns

Maya What if my agent quits?

Dan They file a Statement of Resignation of Resident Agent. Like the change, it's no fee online and $25 on paper. A copy has to go to the LLC.

Maya When does it take effect?

Dan On the 31st day after it's filed. The statement also says whether the resident agent office is being discontinued.

Maya And if I never replace them?

Dan The Division can treat the LLC as inactive and consider dissolving it in the public interest if it fails to appoint a resident agent within 60 days after notice.

Maya Where does that notice go?

Dan By mail to the office the law requires you to maintain, so keep that address current. If the problem isn't corrected within 90 days after the notice, the Division administratively dissolves the company.

7:30 Picking one

Maya How should someone in Boston or Worcester decide?

Dan Three things. Does the price hold next year, is the address a real Massachusetts street address, and who files the statement of change.

Maya And your answer?

Dan Mainstay Filing. Our pick for Massachusetts, at $149 a year.

7:49 The five in a row

Maya Once more, all five?

Dan One, Mainstay Filing: $149 a year, same at renewal. Two, Northwest: $125, with the report enrollment to cancel. Three, MA Registered Agent.org: $99 flat. Four, Bizee: free the first year with a formation order, then $149. Five, Massachusetts Registered Agent.co: $99 flat.

Maya The links are in the show notes. Thanks for listening to The Business Formation Podcast.