Best Alabama LLC Services

Features

Active Filings is one of the smaller companies on our list. It doesn’t offer the extensive array of offerings that other providers do in the way of legal or financial services, instead focusing on incorporation and management. In addition to a free registered agent service, it offers business privilege tax return and annual report compliance, an EIN and, on the highest tier, a corporate seal and book.

It also provides a specialized business incorporation service for international clients, which includes its standard service, unlimited mail forwarding and, on its Gold package, an apostille and certificate of incumbency. The Gold package also provides expedited filing in 10 business days.

Pricing

Active Filings is one of the more inexpensive options on our list. It offers a free plan where you just pay the Alabama filing fee and you get registered agent service for one year and business privilege tax return and annual report preparation and filing included. Its cheapest paid plan costs $100 plus the state fee and offers extras such as an EIN, a business address and expedited filing. For an extra $150 for the Finisher plan, you’ll get a corporate seal and book.

Its international packages start at $999 plus the state fee and include registered agent services for the first year, an EIN, business privilege tax return and annual report preparation and unlimited mail forwarding. With its bilingual support, it offers good value for international businesses wanting to incorporate in the U.S.

Customer Service

Active Filings’ customer service team is reachable by phone and contact form on Mondays to Fridays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET, which is one of the weaker offerings on our list as far as availability is concerned. However, it’s a relatively smaller company, so the lack of seven-day support isn’t a huge surprise. The absence of live chat isn’t preferred, but it’s to be expected from a company of this size.

Reputation

There is no Trustpilot profile for Active Filings, and with only three customer reviews on a BBB profile that isn’t accredited, it’s hard to determine what kind of reputation the business has with its customers. There are 10 reviews on Yelp that average 3.6 out of 5, but overall, there is little reliable information to go on. Again, it isn’t ideal, but not a huge surprise for a business of this size.

Learn more: Read our full Active Filings review.

Features

The Basic plan from Swyft Filings covers just the bare minimum, such as performing a name check and preparing and filing the Alabama LLC formation documents. We find its feature set isn’t quite as robust as we’d like, with other service providers offering more in their starter plans. For example, filing the business privilege tax return is available only with the paid plans and registered agent service is only available as an add-on for all plans.

The provider also boasts a “free statement of the incorporator to open a business bank account” for all plans. It’s a smart idea to open a separate business bank account, as it can help protect your personal finances. However, banks typically just ask for your business formation documents (the approved certificate of formation) to open an account, making this free statement potentially not very useful.

While there are other perks in the higher-tier plan, such as customizable legal documents, alternative providers offer this as well. We do like the one-year domain and website subscription from Web.com that’s included in the top plan. A business website is pretty much a must these days.

Pricing

Swyft Filings starts its LLC formation services at $0, excluding Alabama’s $200 state fee. For additional benefits, there are two higher-tier plans, Standard ($199, plus the Alabama filing fee for a total of $399) and Premium ($299, plus the state filing fee for a total of $499). The pricier plans may be worth the extra price, as they include perks such as instant electronic delivery of state documents when forming your LLC.

Swyft Filings offers a 100% money-back guarantee for any service fees paid to the company. However, the company can’t refund state or government fees.

Customer Service

The Swyft Filings learning center includes useful state-specific guides, among other resources. Telephone customer support is available Monday to Friday, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. CT. We were unable to find a chat support option.

Reputation

Swyft Filings has an excellent Trustpilot rating, backed by more than 6,000 reviews. We did notice that some negative reviews were updated after the company took notice and resolved the complaint, which seems like a good sign. This company pays attention to what its consumers have to say. That said, this LLC service is not BBB accredited.

Learn more: Read our full Swyft Filings review.

Features

Alabama LLCs looking to expand into other states require a foreign qualification, which in this context refers to a “foreign” state rather than another country. Northwest Registered Agent’s foreign qualification service facilitates the process by handling the added state-specific paperwork for registering your business in the state. This lets you avoid having to register as an LLC in the second (or third or fourth) state.

In addition to completing your foreign qualification registration, Northwest Registered Agent becomes your business’s registered agent in the state for receiving official documents. It also takes care of all required compliance filings. Other services include establishing a virtual office in the second state and providing an online presence that’s accessible to customers in the state.

Pricing

Rather than breaking its LLC services into different packages, Northwest Registered Agent starts with a base plan costing $39 plus Alabama filing fees of $200. During checkout, you’re prompted to add various services, such as BOI report compliance ($25), expedited one-day processing by the state ($440) and business identity protection ($9 a month after 90-day trial). Most LLCs will require an EIN ($50), and many will also need corporate books and seals (from $45 to $100), a notary stamp ($35) and stock certificates ($15 for 10).

Customer Service

The Northwest Registered Agent support staff can be contacted by telephone, live chat and email. The company doesn’t post its hours of operation, but when we called the support line we confirmed that its telephone and live chat are available from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. PT Monday to Friday. Email and voicemail messages can be left any time and will typically be answered within 24 hours, according to the support representative we spoke with.

Self-support options include guides, forms, filing instructions and general business management resources.

Reputation

Northwest Registered Agent is a family-owned business that prides itself on offering exceptional customer service. The company employs more than 900 support representatives across the U.S. and pledges never to sell its customers’ private information. While most of the comments in user reviews of the service posted online are positive, some express frustration with the company’s online portal and slow response from its support crew.

Learn more: Read our full Northwest Registered Agent review.

Features

BetterLegal is a suitable choice for LLC service and particularly for compliance. While its state compliance service is a paid add-on, it’s a comprehensive way to ensure your company gets all required paperwork filed in a timely fashion.

BetterLegal offers a single LLC formation package that takes you through the process of setting up your LLC step-by-step. It starts with preparing and filing your documents with the state, including filing an EIN with the IRS. After the paperwork has been processed, BetterLegal will generate the necessary legal documents and send everything to you by email.

BetterLegal also offers registered agent service and state compliance filings as add-ons to fill ongoing legal requirements for operating your LLC.

Pricing

BetterLegal has a single LLC formation package that costs a flat $299 plus state filing fees. This gets you everything you need to create your LLC, as well as some “free” extras, including a website, business checking account and tax analysis.

To get access to registered agent service, you’ll need to pay an additional $10 per month or $90 per year, which amounts to the cost of adding compliance service to your package.

Customer Service

You can reach BetterLegal customer service by phone or through a client support form on the website. There’s also a resources page where you can find information on the differences between various types of companies and other topics related to starting a new business.

Reputation

BetterLegal has a very favorable reputation online. Many reviews commend the company’s ease of use, efficiency and accuracy. Some reviews, however, are critical of slow response time from BetterLegal’s customer service department.

Learn more: Read our full BetterLegal review.

Features

Between its two plan options, Filenow offers a variety of features that could help small business owners looking to form an LLC. Some of the more basic features, such as filing the certificate of formation and performing a business name search in Alabama, are included in the lowest-tier plan. This plan also includes electronic delivery of the documents from the state of Alabama as well as electronic alerts about filing deadlines and other important dates to stay on top of.

Additional features are included in the upper-tier, Premium plan. Some of these include a year of registered agent service, an employer identification number (EIN), a banking resolution, an operating agreement for your business and expedited 24-hour processing.

Pricing

When you’re looking for the best value for your business, Filenow may be a decent choice, depending on the specific features you need. For those who are looking to bundle registered agent services, an operating agreement and an EIN with the plan they choose, Filenow’s Premium plan, which costs $199 plus the Alabama filing fee of $200, may be a good choice. This plan also includes additional features, such as a banking resolution and business contract templates. Filenow puts the total value of the plan at over $400.

However, those with more basic filing needs may find that a free plan from another LLC service provider offers a better value for their needs. Filenow’s cheapest plan costs $49 plus the Alabama filing fee, but many of the features included with it, such as name searches, electronic document delivery and filing the certificate of formation for your business, are included with the no-cost plans from other providers.

Customer Service

Clients can contact a member of the Filenow customer service team by phone, email or chat. Filenow also offers 24/7 customer support, a service that is lacking in most other LLC service providers. For more basic needs, small business owners can also use the frequently asked questions page to help them find the information they need quickly.

Reputation

Filenow has been an accredited business with the Better Business Bureau since 2019 and currently holds an A+ rating from the organization. Filenow does not have as many customer reviews as other companies. However, based on the reviews that are available, it appears that most customers are mostly satisfied with the company. It has an average of 4.8 stars from Shopper Approved (with over 700 reviews), an average of 4.3 stars on Google (with nine reviews) and an average of 3.8 stars on Trustpilot (though, only based on two reviews).

Learn more: Read our full Filenow review.