Why compare US company formation over five years
The first price shown for a US company is usually a state filing fee or a formation package.
A functioning entity also needs a registered agent, records, accounting, federal and state returns, recurring state filings, and sometimes payroll, foreign qualification, or a business address.
An option with the lowest checkout price may not have the lowest cost after three or five operating years.
This calculator compares as many as three Delaware, Wyoming, or California LLC and C corporation options.
Official minimum filing assumptions checked on August 4, 2026 stay separate from user-entered professional-service quotes.
The result is a planning cash-flow model, not a state recommendation, entity-classification decision, or tax computation.
Use the tool to normalize scope across quotes.
Confirm legal eligibility, tax nexus, filing obligations, banking requirements, and Korean outbound-investment procedure with qualified advisers and the relevant agencies.
What the total cost of ownership includes
Total cost of ownership combines setup cash, annual services, periodic reports, recurring state charges, and an optional exit budget.
Shared costs are entered once and applied to every option, while state-specific costs remain attached to the relevant scenario.
This separation makes it easier to spot a duplicated package item or a service missing from only one quote.
Shared setup
EIN and banking support, legal and tax structuring, BEA support, Korean FX support, and initial foreign qualification
State setup
State formation filing, expedited processing, formation service, and other state-specific setup items
Shared recurring
Annualized bookkeeping and payroll plus address, federal and state return preparation, and compliance support
State recurring
Registered agent, annual or biennial report, franchise or license charge, and other state-specific upkeep
Optional exit
State dissolution or cancellation filing plus final legal, tax, and service quotes
FX and present value
A fixed KRW per USD assumption, a plus or minus ten percent FX range, and discounted future outflows
Income tax, payroll tax, sales tax, penalties, interest, litigation, and ordinary business expenses are not computed.
A tax-return preparation quote is a service cost and must not be confused with the tax due on a return.
Official-minimum state presets checked in 2026
The table summarizes fixed or minimum amounts visible in primary state sources.
Actual charges can change with share structure, in-state assets, income, expedited service, document length, tax year, or an entity balance.
Every preset is editable so an official notice or a structure-specific calculation can replace a minimum.
Official-minimum comparison for LLCs and C corporations in three US states| State and form | Formation | Year-one state charge | Report | Exit filing | Boundary |
|---|
| Delaware LLC | USD 110 | USD 400 | No separate annual report | USD 220 | Annual tax increased to USD 400 under the 2026 law |
| Delaware C corporation | From USD 109 | Minimum franchise tax USD 175 | USD 50 every year | USD 224 | Formation and tax can rise with shares, par value, and capital |
| Wyoming LLC or corporation | USD 100 | From USD 60 | Included in license tax | USD 60 | Greater of USD 60 or 0.0002 of Wyoming assets |
| California LLC | USD 70 | USD 800 | USD 20 initially and every two years | SOS no fee | Income-based LLC fee is excluded |
| California C corporation | USD 100 | First-year minimum USD 0 | USD 25 initially and every year | SOS no fee | First-year net-income tax and actual later tax are excluded |
Why the Delaware LLC preset is USD 400, not USD 300
Some older Delaware forms and pages can still display an annual LLC tax of USD 300.
Delaware Laws Volume 85 Chapter 273 changed the amount to USD 400 and made the LLC annual-tax section effective January 1, 2026.
The calculator follows the enacted amount and still tells the user to verify the live payment record before paying.
Step-by-step workflow
- Enter the formation year and month, a planning KRW per USD rate, and the nominal discount rate used for NPV.
The exchange rate is a user scenario rather than a live market quote.
- Add costs that apply to every option, including structure review, accounting, returns, banking support, address, and Korean FX assistance.
Split bundled quotes before entry so the same service is not counted twice.
- Select a state and an LLC or C corporation for up to three options.
Changing the state or form reapplies the matching official-minimum preset while preserving private quote fields.
- Enter the registered-agent renewal, formation service, expedited processing, report, and dissolution quotes for each option.
Replace a minimum with the amount from a state notice when share structure or Wyoming assets make the actual charge higher.
- Review one, three, and five-year nominal TCO, NPV, KRW conversion, FX sensitivity, and the five-year cash-flow table.
Treat the lowest result as arithmetic only and complete the legal, tax, nexus, banking, and exit review separately.
Five-year examples using only official minimums
With every private and shared quote set to zero, a Delaware LLC is USD 110 at formation plus USD 400 for each of five operating years, producing USD 2,110.
A Wyoming LLC is USD 100 at formation plus the USD 60 annual license-tax minimum, producing USD 400 over five years.
A California LLC is USD 70 at formation, five annual taxes of USD 800, and three information statements of USD 20 in years one, three, and five, producing USD 4,130.
Delaware LLC
USD 2,110
Official-minimum view with no agent, accounting, return, address, or legal quote
Wyoming LLC
USD 400
Assumes the Wyoming asset formula does not exceed the minimum
California LLC
USD 4,130
Excludes the income-based LLC fee and any actual income tax
These examples do not prove that one state is preferable.
A business operating in California may need California foreign qualification, filings, and tax even when it formed in Delaware or Wyoming.
Investor expectations, governing law, licenses, banking, payment processors, employees, offices, and privacy obligations can matter more than a filing-fee difference.
Three federal boundaries that a formation quote may miss
Direct EIN application has a government fee of zero
The IRS does not charge a fee for a direct Employer Identification Number application.
An international applicant may not qualify for the online process and may need the phone, fax, or mail procedure described in the Form SS-4 instructions.
The calculator field is for an actual preparation, review, international application, or banking-support quote rather than an IRS fee.
Form 5472 needs a separate applicability review
A 25-percent foreign-owned US corporation or a foreign-owned US disregarded entity can have Form 5472 obligations when it has a reportable transaction.
A foreign-owned disregarded entity can also need a pro forma Form 1120, and the base failure-to-file penalty described by the IRS is USD 25,000.
The normal TCO should contain a qualified preparation quote rather than treating a preventable penalty as an expected operating cost.
Current BOI exemption and BE-13 are different regimes
Under the current FinCEN interim final rule, entities created under US law are no longer domestic reporting companies and are exempt from BOI reports.
Recheck that rule on the formation date because a final rule, legislation, or litigation can change the posture.
Separately, a new US business with at least ten percent foreign voting ownership can fall within the BEA BE-13 new foreign direct investment survey, generally with a 45-day deadline after establishment.
A BOI exemption does not create an exemption from BEA surveys or tax filings.
Korean foreign-exchange procedure for a Korean resident
A Korean resident funding and owning a US entity must coordinate US formation with Korean foreign-exchange procedure.
Article 18 of the Foreign Exchange Transactions Act provides the general reporting framework for capital transactions, while Article 9-5 of the Foreign Exchange Transactions Regulation addresses outbound direct-investment reporting.
Classification and documents can change with voting rights, ownership percentage, funding purpose, existing affiliates, and whether the transfer is equity or debt.
- Show the draft formation documents, ownership chart, funding amount, business plan, and source-of-funds evidence to the designated foreign-exchange bank before remittance
- Confirm the required report or acceptance, the payment sequence, and which evidence can be produced before and after formation
- Maintain a separate calendar for investment completion, amendments, annual operating reports, and liquidation follow-up reports
- Enter only actual bank, translation, certification, or legal-support quotes because the calculator does not classify the transaction
The ability of a formation provider to create an entity first does not establish the correct Korean remittance sequence.
Confirm the order with the designated foreign-exchange bank before paying capital or formation expenses.
Practical comparison scenarios
Testing a small online business
Build a minimum option with agent and return preparation, a standard option with bookkeeping, and an expanded option with payroll and foreign qualification.
The accumulated fixed cost can support a decision about formation timing or staged service scope.
Preparing for US venture investment
Replace the Delaware C corporation minimum with a franchise-tax estimate based on the proposed authorized shares and par value.
Add cap-table, stock-plan, board-consent, securities, and legal work to the actual quote rather than hiding it inside the filing fee.
Operating from California
Add California foreign qualification, information statements, FTB charges, payroll support, and sales-tax support to an out-of-state formation option when applicable.
Compare every option on the same operating footprint rather than comparing formation jurisdictions in isolation.
Planning for a possible shutdown
Turn on exit inclusion and enter state filing, final return, contract, bank, and agent-termination quotes.
An entity can continue to incur state charges after operations stop, so confirm the legal termination date and final filing sequence.
Tips for a defensible estimate
- Separate government fees, professional fees, third-party charges, mail, certification, and renewal prices on every quote
- Check the renewal price after a free or discounted first-year registered-agent offer
- Confirm whether bookkeeping or return packages include Form 5472, pro forma Form 1120, state returns, and payroll forms
- Verify whether the business address and registered office are separate services and whether banks or processors accept the address
- Manage legal due dates from the live entity record and tax year rather than treating the operating-year display as a filing calendar
- Treat the FX range as a simple sensitivity because it excludes spread, fixed wire fees, and multiple conversion stages
- Treat NPV as a nominal year-end comparison because it does not forecast inflation, fee increases, or tax benefits
Strong inputs come from a Secretary of State fee page, an entity tax notice, a CPA engagement letter, a registered-agent renewal quote, and written bank guidance.
Record the source and check date so next year’s update can distinguish a statutory change from a vendor price change.
Frequently asked questions
Does the calculator recommend the cheapest state?
No; it displays the lowest arithmetic result from the inputs while operating state, law, tax, banking, licensing, and investor needs require separate review.
Why is the EIN default zero?
Direct IRS application has no government fee, so the field is only for actual preparation, international application, or banking-support service.
Must every US LLC file a BOI report?
Under the FinCEN rule checked on August 4, 2026, US-created domestic entities are exempt, but the official rule must be rechecked on the formation date.
Is Delaware LLC annual tax still USD 300?
The calculator uses USD 400 under Delaware Chapter 273 effective in 2026 and advises checking the live payment record.
Can a business remove California USD 800 when it has no California sales?
A California-organized LLC preset includes USD 800 based on organization, while a foreign entity needs a fact-specific doing-business and nexus review before changing the amount.
Does entering dissolution cost end every obligation?
No; final federal and state returns, unpaid balances, employment, contracts, banking, and Korean liquidation reports can remain outside the entered exit quote.
Normalize three real quotes before signing
Keep the official presets, then add real registered-agent, accounting, tax, address, legal, banking, and Korean compliance quotes.
Use the five-year TCO and cash-flow rows to find a missing year or a duplicated package item, then test exit inclusion and FX sensitivity.
The resulting worksheet can turn a headline formation price into a clearer list of contract questions and renewal obligations.