First LLC Guide › Side hustle
Best LLC formation service for a side hustle (2026)
Mainstay Filing, if you want a fixed yearly number. A side hustle earns little at first, so the question is what the LLC costs in a quiet year: $199 with Mainstay Filing, plus the state fee and, where the state has one, its report fee.
Mainstay Filing
$199 / year plus state fees at cost
- LLC formation, prepared and filed
- Registered agent, all year
- EIN application (with an SSN or ITIN)
- Annual report filed every year it is due where the state requires one
- Compliance reminders and stored documents
Price from the Mainstay Filing pricing and FAQ pages, checked October 21, 2026. State fees are passed through at cost and shown before you pay.
What the LLC costs when the hustle is small
The lowest first-year price among the five is Bizee at $0, before the state fee. It is also the one whose year-2 price rises to $149. If the side income is uncertain, the number to hold in your head is the year-2 one.
| Service | Montana | Delaware | Massachusetts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mainstay Filing | $672 | $1,507 | $2,097 |
| Northwest Registered Agent | $364 | $1,199 | $1,789 |
| ZenBusiness | $572 | $1,407 | $1,997 |
| Bizee | $373 | $1,208 | $1,798 |
| LegalZoom | $822 | $1,657 | $2,247 |
Those three states are the cheapest filing fee (Montana, $35), Delaware, and the dearest (Massachusetts, $500). The state fee is identical for every provider, so the gap between services never changes.
Check your state first
Forming in a different state from where you work can mean registering in both, which adds a second fee and agent; check the rules of the state where you operate.6 states charge no annual report, among them Alabama, Arizona and Missouri; in those the annual-report filing a bundle includes is worth nothing. Look yours up in the 50-state table.
Questions
Best LLC formation service for a side hustle?
Mainstay Filing, if you want a fixed yearly number. A side hustle earns little at first, so the question is what the LLC costs in a quiet year: $199 with Mainstay Filing, plus the state fee and, where the state has one, its report fee.
Is an LLC worth it for a small side hustle?
That depends on liability exposure and tax advice we do not give. The cost side is in the table above.
Not you? The other owner types.