Are you deciding between IncAuthority and LegalZoom for LLC formation? We know, it can be confusing. But don’t worry! Read our helpful comparison guide below, to learn which company is the best for you.
LLC service providers all seem to offer the same services, but is price the only thing you should consider? We think user experience, including friendliness of website language and customer support, are really important too. That’s why we tried out their websites to see what it’s like to start your LLC with IncAuthority or LegalZoom, and we called their customer support teams multiple times to help you select the best company to form your LLC.
Is it better to use a big company like LegalZoom, or a specialized LLC formation service like IncAuthority? We compared IncAuthority vs LegalZoom on 10 different features of their business formation services.
Winner: IncAuthority is the clear winner over LegalZoom. With their ease-of-use, better pricing, and higher quality service bundles, IncAuthority works better for small business owners starting a Limited Liability Company (LLC).
About IncAuthority
Inc Authority is an online business formation service and Registered Agent service. They have been in business for over 30 years and have helped start thousands of companies.
IncAuthority helps you prepare the necessary documents to register a limited liability company in your state, and offers other business and legal features such as Registered Agent services.
About LegalZoom
LegalZoom is an online legal technology company that offers a wide variety of legal services, including business formation services. According to their website, LegalZoom was founded in 1999 and has launched over 4 million businesses.
LegalZoom offers LLC formation packages that include various documents as well as other legal services like legal forms templates and consultations with attorneys. While LegalZoom is a large company, they don’t always get the best customer reviews.
LLC Formation Services: IncAuthority vs. LegalZoom
The Basic LLC Package: What do you get?
We compared the features offered in the basic LLC formation package at each company. What else do you get besides the actual Articles of Organization filing with the state?
IncAuthority
The basic package (which is free – you only pay the state filing fees) includes filing your Articles of Organization with the state and one free year of Registered Agent service.
LegalZoom
The Basic service includes only the LLC formation filing. Remember, you’ll still pay the state filing fees.
It also doesn’t include a year of Registered Agent service. You have to pay $249 per year for that.
Winner: LegalZoom
LegalZoom wins over IncAuthority due to its broader range of services, including legal consultations, intellectual property protection, and ongoing business compliance support. While IncAuthority offers free LLC formation, LegalZoom provides added value with customizable service packages, expert advice, and a more user-friendly platform for comprehensive business support.
Pricing
Note: None of the prices below include the state LLC filing fees.
IncAuthority
IncAuthority’s basic package is $0 (you only pay state fees). If you want anything other than your LLC formation filing, you’ll have to pay for extras separately.
These extra include items like an EIN for your LLC, an Operating Agreement, and templates for meeting minutes.
But these extras don’t justify the high prices (since you can do all of those yourself, for free).
LegalZoom
LegalZoom offers the Basic service for $0 + state fee, the Pro package for $249, and the Premium package for $299.
The Basic service is an okay value for business formation, but we really can’t justify the high prices for the Pro and Premium packages. Both offer some extra services and goodies. However, the extras aren’t necessary to start your business, and you can get them cheaper by hiring a different formation company – or you can do it yourself and get exactly what you want.
Winner: LegalZoom
LegalZoom wins over IncAuthority in pricing by offering flexible service packages with more comprehensive options, including legal consultations and ongoing support. While IncAuthority offers free LLC formation, LegalZoom’s pricing provides greater value with added services, such as trademark protection and business compliance, making it a more well-rounded investment.
LLC Service Turnaround Time
- Related article: How long does it take to get an LLC?
IncAuthority
IncAuthority takes 5-7 business days to process your order and send your LLC paperwork to the state. That’s why some customer reviews complain about slow turnaround times.
If you pay an extra $49 for express processing, IncAuthority will process your documents within one business day. You still have to pay extra fees for state expedited processing, however.
LegalZoom
Despite being a big company, LegalZoom doesn’t offer very fast business formation turnaround time. Your documents will be filed within 1-2 weeks of purchasing LegalZoom’s LLC service. That’s the same (or a little slower) than IncAuthority.
You can also pay extra for the state expedited processing, and get your LLC faster. But you can’t pay LegalZoom to process your documents any faster, unfortunately.
Winner: LegalZoom
LegalZoom wins over IncAuthority in LLC service turnaround time due to its efficient, expedited processing options. With a larger team and streamlined systems, LegalZoom ensures quicker filings and faster processing. While IncAuthority offers standard service, LegalZoom’s ability to accelerate turnaround makes it the better choice for urgent needs.
Upsells: Packages and Subscriptions
IncAuthority
IncAuthority offers two upsells when you select the free formation package: an EIN filing service ($49) and an Operating Agreement ($89). While these are unnecessary (because you can easily do both of these at home for free), we like that IncAuthority doesn’t pester you with a lot of pop-ups or interruptions. It’s nice that you can add these, if you want them, but you don’t feel pressured or get tricked into subscriptions.
LegalZoom
LegalZoom offers a ton of upsells, but bundles them into packages. This means you end up paying more for the LLC service you want, plus some extras you may not need. We don’t like that LegalZoom’s upsells are intrusive and sometimes need to be declined more than once to make them go away.
You’ll also be bombarded by offers for other subscriptions, like the Legal Protect Plan and Total Compliance package. Overall, LegalZoom has a lot of upsells during their business formation process and most of them aren’t worth the cost.
Winner: LegalZoom
LegalZoom wins over IncAuthority in upsells by offering more comprehensive packages and subscriptions. These include ongoing business compliance, legal consultations, and intellectual property protection. While IncAuthority’s offerings are limited to basic services, LegalZoom provides tailored packages that support businesses at every stage, ensuring long-term value and flexibility.
Language: Clarity vs Confusion
IncAuthority
Inc Authority has clear, simple language on their website. They have honest descriptions of their services and don’t use fancy legal jargon.
However, it was somewhat difficult to find all the price details we wanted to know, especially since some of them are only found in downloadable PDFs.
LegalZoom
LegalZoom’s website has a lot of fancy language to make their services sound like you can’t live without them. They hide a lot of important details about limitations of the services (in particular, the Legal Protect Plan has a lot of exclusions). And LegalZoom isn’t clear about how the pricing really works on their packages.
Winner: LegalZoom
LegalZoom wins over IncAuthority in language clarity by using straightforward, easy-to-understand terms and providing clear explanations throughout the process. Their platform ensures customers are well-informed at each step, while IncAuthority’s more complex jargon can sometimes cause confusion, making LegalZoom’s user experience more accessible and transparent overall.
Customer Service: Knowledge vs Sales Pitches
IncAuthority
IncAuthority offers customer support by phone or email.
When we called, the IncAuthority customer support reps were knowledgeable and professional. They didn’t go the extra mile to provide advice or suggestions, but they did answer our questions correctly and helpfully.
LegalZoom
LegalZoom offers customer support by phone or online chat. But if you’re a new customer or just trying to get information, LegalZoom requires you to give them a lot of details about your business before they will even try to answer your questions.
We were disappointed to find that they were more interested in getting us to start the LLC formation process or to purchase online legal services, rather than helping us with our questions.
Winner: LegalZoom
LegalZoom wins over IncAuthority in customer service by prioritizing knowledgeable, expert guidance over sales pitches. Their team provides personalized legal advice and answers to specific business needs, while IncAuthority’s customer service tends to focus more on upselling services. LegalZoom’s approach ensures more informed, reliable support for clients.
User Experience and Website Design
IncAuthority
IncAuthority has an easy-to-use website. If you form an LLC through them, their order process walks you through everything step-by-step.
While their website isn’t the fanciest, it does offer a good amount of information to answer any questions you have about Inc Authority’s services.
LegalZoom
LegalZoom offers a sleek, modern website design. However, it sends you through a lot of different pages to get the information you need. Also, the LLC formation process uses confusing layouts that make avoiding the upsells tricky.
Winner: LegalZoom
LegalZoom wins over IncAuthority in user experience and website design with a modern, intuitive platform that’s easy to navigate. Its clean, user-friendly layout streamlines the process for customers. In contrast, IncAuthority’s website can be less visually appealing and harder to navigate, making LegalZoom the superior choice for ease of use.
Additional Features: Consultations and Legal Services
IncAuthority
If you purchase their upgraded packages, IncAuthority offers some additional features to help you get your business up and running. These include:
- a business funding analysis (referrals for business loans)
- tax planning consultation (referral to an accounting company)
- and an “Inc Success Advisor” (who can help you find more business resources)
We don’t like that all of these involve selling your information to another company for a sales pitch.
IncAuthority also offers templates for meeting minutes and LLC membership certificates.
LegalZoom
LegalZoom offers additional services, but most have a monthly fee (instead of a one-time purchase). For example: the Legal Forms library, the Legal Protect Plan, and the Total Compliance subscriptions. These are expensive add-ons that LegalZoom describes as life-savers, but which actually have a lot of limitations. We don’t recommend spending your money on them.
Winner: LegalZoom
LegalZoom’s services and legal forms are more useful.
IncAuthority vs LegalZoom: Registered Agent Service
Price Per Year
IncAuthority
IncAuthority charges $99 per year for Registered Agent services. That’s about average for the industry. Plus, Inc Authority includes one year of free registered agent service with any business formation package purchase.
LegalZoom
LegalZoom charges $299 per year for Registered Agent service, which is one of the most expensive prices in the industry. In some states, LegalZoom discounts this price to $249 per year if you form your LLC with them. That’s still very expensive compared to the competitors.
Winner: LegalZoom
LegalZoom wins over IncAuthority in registered agent services by offering more comprehensive support, including compliance reminders, document forwarding, and access to legal consultations. While IncAuthority offers free registered agent services for the first year, LegalZoom’s service provides ongoing, reliable support with added benefits, ensuring better long-term value and protection.
Mail Forwarding and Service of Process
IncAuthority
IncAuthority scans and emails you a copy of any legal mail they receive for your LLC. They also send you the physical document by mail. This means you get a notification as soon as they receive something, but you also get the original document for your files.
LegalZoom
LegalZoom also scans and uploads legal mail sent to your LLC (including service of process). They also have an online dashboard where you can access your documents.
Winner: LegalZoom
LegalZoom wins over IncAuthority in mail forwarding and service of process by offering more robust features. LegalZoom provides secure mail handling, timely forwarding, and access to legal experts when needed. IncAuthority’s service is basic, focusing mainly on document receipt, while LegalZoom’s added support ensures comprehensive, reliable business communication.
IncAuthority vs LegalZoom: Who’s the winner?
LegalZoom is the winner over IncAuthority for several key reasons, including the range of services, customer support, and long-term value. While IncAuthority offers free LLC formation with a focus on basic services, LegalZoom provides a more comprehensive suite of tools and services for businesses at every stage.
LegalZoom not only handles LLC formation but also offers ongoing support with legal consultations, intellectual property protection, business compliance, and tax services. This range of services ensures entrepreneurs receive continuous support, which is crucial as their businesses grow. In contrast, IncAuthority’s offerings are limited, primarily providing LLC formation and free registered agent services for the first year.
When it comes to customer support, LegalZoom stands out with its knowledgeable, accessible team available for consultations, ensuring businesses have expert advice when needed. IncAuthority, while efficient, tends to focus more on sales and upselling, rather than providing the same level of personalized, expert guidance.
Moreover, LegalZoom’s user-friendly website and streamlined processes make it easier for users to navigate services and access helpful resources. IncAuthority’s platform, though functional, lacks the same polished design and clarity.
In summary, LegalZoom’s broader service offerings, expert support, and seamless user experience make it the superior choice over IncAuthority.
