Northwest Registered Agent Review 2024

In this review, we will cut to the chase and go over what you really need to know:

• Northwest Registered Agent’s true cost and pricing
• The turnaround time you can expect for LLC formation or incorporation
• Northwest Registered Agent’s reliability, customer reviews, support and much more

Plus, we’ll provide clear explanations of the many other relevant, formation-related services that Northwest Registered Agent offers.

Below is a quick summary of our findings. Further down, you will find our more comprehensive review, which details our conclusions and also explains everything you need to know about Northwest Registered Agent.

Is Northwest Registered Agent the Right Choice for You?

• Pricing:
• Turnaround Time:
• Help & Support:
• Customer Satisfaction:
• Ease of Use:

Overall Score:

4.9/5

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Northwest Registered Agent Pros

Best Pricing ($29 for an LLC)

Fast Business Formation & Same-Day Filing​

Very Easy to Use

Strong Privacy & Data Protection

Reliable and Well-Respected​

Excellent Customer Support​

Northwest Registered Agent Cons

Have to Call for Refund

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Scoring Weights: Pricing (2x), Turnaround Time (2x) and Customer Satisfaction (1.5x) have been given additional weights in our scoring.

With an easy-to-use online interface and excellent customer service, Northwest Registered Agent is a reliable, trustworthy specialist company that can help ensure your LLC formation or incorporation is carried out quickly and professionally.

You are guaranteed quick LLC filings, excellent privacy protections, and the benefit of working with a company with many years of experience in the field.

Charging only $29 for your LLC formation + a free registered agent service for your first year; Northwest are simply unbeatable.

Visit NorthwestRegisteredAgent.com for more information, or continue reading to find out what metrics we used to evaluate the service.

Northwest Registered Agent Quick Overview

Northwest Registered Agent LLC is an LLC formation and registered agent company based in Spokane, Washington.

According to their website, they are a family-owned and managed medium-sized business with more than 900 employees. Northwest Registered Agent offers a multitude of services aimed at entrepreneurs and business owners.

Using the slogan “We’re Just Not Annoying,” the company tries to set itself apart from its competition with a strong focus on excellent customer support, clear communication, and effective privacy protection and data security practices.

Having been in business since 1998, they boast over two decades of experience in the formation of LLCs.

Northwest Registered Agent offers many services related to starting and running a business. Among its core services are:

• A quick and easy-to-use online LLC formation and incorporation service
• A registered agent service present in all 50 states
• Virtual office and mail forwarding services
• Annual business compliance filing
• …plus many others

If you’re interested in learning more specifics, be sure to check out the section below, which offers a more detailed breakdown of these offered services.

Northwest Registered Agent Pricing

Northwest offers one formation package at $29 plus state filing fees. 

This formation package includes: 

• Quick, two-day filing 
• One year of free registered agent service 
• Business address and free mail forwarding 
• An LLC operating agreement 
• Free domain, website, email, and business phone 
• Unmatched privacy protection

In addition to their formation services, Northwest also offers virtual office, trademark registration, and employer identification number (EIN) obtainment services for an additional cost. 

Northwest Registered Agent vs Competitors’ Pricing

Below, you’ll find our table that compares Northwest Registered Agent’s formation prices with those of its main competitors: LegalZoom and ZenBusiness.

Northwest Registered Agent Pros

Read on to find out more about Northwest Registered Agent’s strengths and main selling points.

1. Best LLC Formation Deal

Forming a new business is never cheap, but overspending on the “legal stuff” hurts particularly bad. Wasting money on costly attorneys is the last thing a new venture needs.

Northwest has created a deal for Inc and Go readers; start your LLC for only $29 + state fees. This includes the registered agent service for your first year; usually priced at $125/yr.

To illustrate just how cheap this really is, here’s what you can expect to pay across the board:

1. Northwest: $29
2. Competitors: $150-$350
3. Attorneys: $300+

There’s not much more to it; Northwest is the best deal on the market!

2. Excellent customer reviews

While Northwest Registered Agent has fewer online reviews than some of its competitors, most of the reviews it does have are highly positive.

The company is rated highly on Google, Yelp, and the Better Business Bureau. Customers praise the simplicity of the service, the quick turnaround times and, in particular, the friendliness, helpfulness, and professionalism of the customer service staff.

Google Reviews:

Yelp Reviews:

They also sport a 4.51/5.00 rating on the BBB website.

3. Great customer support

Northwest Registered Agent prides itself on its ability to provide quick, competent, and hassle-free customer service and support through its in-house customer support team.

Whether you reach out by email or telephone, Northwest Registered Agent promises that they will answer your questions and help you; you’ll promptly speak to a single representative instead of being made to wait or being passed off from rep to rep.

Northwest Registered Agent can field any questions you may have about business formation in general, or about the particulars or circumstances of your business formation. They do this through their team of Corporate Guides, experts in the formation of business entities who can help ensure your LLC filing goes as smoothly as possible.

There are several ways to contact Northwest Registered Agent:

Online: Use the form on their Contact Us page.

Phone: Call them at 509-768-2249.

Email: Send your message to support@northwestregisteredagent.com.

4. Simple to use, clear communication, and no upselling

Forming an LLC with Northwest Registered Agent couldn’t be simpler. You will have to provide some basic information regarding your business, such as the desired name of your LLC, the state where you want it to be registered, whether it will be member-managed or manager-managed, and the names of the member(s).

After you place your order, Northwest Registered Agent will take care of the rest. You may receive a call if any details are missing, but beyond that, you don’t need to do a thing.

We also liked the wide selection of legal explanation articles available on the company’s website. If you have any questions regarding the business formation process, odds are that you will find an article explaining everything thoroughly in easy-to-understand language.

Staying true to their slogan, Northwest Registered Agent also doesn’t try to actively upsell you on services you don’t need.

5. Reliable and trustworthy service

Northwest Registered Agent has been in the LLC formation and registered agent business for more than two decades. They have a long track record of reliability and trustworthiness, which is clearly evident in the reviews they’ve received.

They service not only individuals but also law firms who need LLCs filed on behalf of their clients. By keeping their staff in-house, they can ensure that the quality of their services remains consistent.

6. Great privacy protections

Northwest Registered Agent also prides itself on its strong reputation for, and commitment to, protecting user privacy.

Adhering to the slogan “Privacy By Default,” they have structured their business processes to protect your privacy and limit the exposure of your personal information to the outside world.

According to their website, their commitment to privacy includes:

• Using the company’s own information (e.g. address, IP address) instead of yours when filing documents, wherever possible
• Never selling your personal information to any third parties
• Ensuring that the IT infrastructure used to handle your data is robust and secure (it is audited for vulnerabilities through an in-house IT security team)
• Limiting access to your personal information to those who are in-house and never transferring personal information to third parties without your prior consent
• Never requesting information from you unless it is strictly necessary to carry out your orders

We like that Northwest Registered Agent explicitly recognizes the need to protect your sensitive data, which is not something all of their competitors emphasize.

Northwest Registered Agent Cons

Here we go over some of the areas where we believe Northwest Registered Agent could use some improvement.

1. Have to call for a refund

Unfortunately, Northwest Registered Agent requires you to call them up for a refund, in case you change your mind.

All in all; pretty much a non-issue for most folks.

Northwest Registered Agent LLC Formation Services

Those working at Northwest Registered Agent are specialists in the registering of LLCs and corporations. All the services they provide make forming your business quick and hassle-free.

Below, we have summarized the main services Northwest Registered Agent offers for your business formation.

Business Formation Service

$29, plus state filing fees

If you intend to start a business, forming a limited liability company will most likely be the first step of your journey. The creation of LLCs in the US is done at the state level by filing articles of incorporation with the relevant state authority.

Unfortunately, navigating bureaucracies and state-specific rules can be a hassle, and making a mistake can cost you and your business valuable time.

It is possible to perform the necessary steps to form an LLC for your new business on your own. If you would like to leave it to the professionals and use a formation package, though, Northwest Registered Agent can take care of all the necessary paperwork to ensure the formation process goes smoothly.

Their team of local business experts will handle all necessary interactions with the authorities in the state where you’re forming your LLC.

Filing your LLC with them is quick and can be done entirely online.

You will be asked to answer a series of questions regarding your future business, such as your desired business name and how your limited liability company will be managed, before finalizing your order.

Northwest Registered Agent promises that they will begin filing the documents for your LLC on the same business day your order is finalized.

All states charge a filing fee for the formation of a limited liability company. This fee varies from $40 to $500, depending on your filing state. You will be shown the fee amount at checkout.

After all the necessary documents have been sent, you will have to wait while the relevant state authorities process your LLC formation documents. Processing time varies by state.

You will be able to monitor your order and track the progress of your LLC formation through your online account on Northwest Registered Agent’s website. Once your filing has been processed, you will receive the filing response paperwork via email.

Registered Agent Service

Free with LLC formation services, $125 per year after

All US states require that limited liability companies and corporations designate a person as a registered agent when they form. The registered agent acts as the company’s point-of-contact for service of process – which includes official legal notices, such as court summons.

Failure to appoint a registered agent can jeopardize a company’s good standing and may lead to penalties.

A registered agent must be a resident of the state your LLC is based in. They will have to be available during business hours in order to receive important legal documents if the need arises. The name and address of the registered agent will become part of the public record and is thus freely accessible to anyone.

You can act as your own registered agent or you can use a professional service. You may have good reason to hire a registered agent service if:

• You travel frequently and cannot always be available at one address
• You are not a resident of the United States
• Your business operates in more than one state
• You don’t want your name and address to be publicly available

Fortunately, registered agent service is free for one year when you choose to form your LLC with Northwest.

Operating agreement and other documents

Provided for free with LLC formation services

Certain legal documents become immediately necessary upon the creation of your new LLC. Among others, they include documents such as operating agreements or banking resolutions. Northwest Registered Agent can provide you with templates for such documents.

An operating agreement is a document in which the member(s) of an LLC set out basic rules regarding how the LLC will operate and what rights the members have. It may specify:

• How the LLC will be managed
• How ownership interest is allocated between the members
• How profits are paid out to members
• What happens if a member would like to exit the LLC
• …and many other important questions

Do you need an operating agreement? It depends on the state where you are forming your LLC. Some states legally require all LLCs to have an operating agreement. Even if your state does not require an operating agreement, it is still usually in your best interest to have one.

Northwest Registered Agent provides a free library of basic legal documents for LLCs. It includes templates for documents such as articles of organization, operating agreements, LLC member resolutions, and many more.

If you use Northwest Registered Agent to form your LLC, you will be provided with a set of pre-filled documents, which you can download from their website and use immediately.

Note that these documents are standard templates. If you need customized documents, we recommend that you consult with a legal professional who can draft one in accordance with your specific circumstances.

Obtain a federal tax ID (EIN)

$50 with for residents, or $200 for non-residents

The majority of businesses operating in the US need to have a federal tax ID number, also known as an employer identification number (EIN). The IRS uses this number to identify and track business entities for tax purposes.

Think of an EIN as your company’s social security number.

If your business is going to have employees or pay excise taxes, you will need an EIN. You may also need one if state law in your jurisdiction requires it, or if your bank requires one in order to open a business bank account.

You can obtain an EIN either by filing the necessary paperwork yourself, or you can let Northwest Registered Agent do it for a fee. We generally recommend that you do it yourself. You can receive an EIN online, and in only a few minutes, through the IRS Website.

S-Corp Election

$50 for S-Corp Election

S-Corp is a classification assigned by the IRS for tax purposes. Both Corporations and LLCs can elect to be treated as an S-Corp by the IRS. Being classified as an S-Corp can potentially lead to tax advantages when paying out profits from your LLC.

Click here to learn more about S-Corporations.

You should consult with an accountant as to whether being treated as an S-Corps makes sense for your business.

For a fee, Northwest Registered Agent can handle the paperwork associated with filing an S-Corp election with the IRS on your behalf.

You are not obligated to make such a choice immediately when forming your LLC – you can choose to be treated as an S-Corp at a later time.

Annual Business Compliance Filing

$100, plus state filing fees

Most businesses are required by law to file certain reports with their respective state authorities, usually once per year.

These reports must usually contain basic information regarding the LLC, such as the company’s address or the names of the members or managers. It is used to keep the governing authorities informed about the businesses operating in their jurisdiction.

It is important that you file your annual report by its due date in order to avoid penalties or other consequences.

Some states have a fixed due date, while other states expect your annual report by the anniversary date of your LLC’s formation. In some states, you may only need to file the report every two years.

We recommend you check with your Secretary of State online or by phone for specific information.

Most states require you to pay a fee when filing your annual report. This fee varies by state but is usually less than $100. You will have to pay this fee regardless of whether your LLC has earned any revenue during the past year.

Failure to pay the fee in time can even lead to your LLC being dissolved, so it is important to ensure that your payment and filing are taken care of in time.

Northwest Registered Agent can file your annual paperwork for you for the cost of $100, plus the applicable state fees.

For this price, you are promised a correctly prepared report and are ensured you won’t miss the relevant due date. You will be notified 90 days before the due date, and your card will be charged five days after the notification.

Virtual Office, Mail Forwarding, and VoIP

As a minor service, Northwest Registered Agent allows you to use their office address as a business address for your company.

Any correspondence or phone calls will then be forwarded to your address or phone number. This may be useful if you would like to maintain your privacy – however you are not required to opt into these services if you don’t need them.

Do we recommend Northwest Registered Agent?

Yes, we do!

Sporting a two-decade-long track record of success, Northwest Registered Agent makes it easy and convenient for you to form a new LLC online. As soon as you transmit the necessary information, Northwest Registered Agent will begin the filing process and form your LLC for you.

Using their registered agent and annual business compliance service, you can ensure that your new business will remain in good standing and that you will always be informed of important legal matters.

Northwest Registered Agent is not the cheapest among competitors – but they make up for their cost by providing professional, helpful, and knowledgeable staff as well as strong privacy and data protection.

If you would still like to compare Northwest Registered Agent with some other options, be sure to check out our other reviews and our best LLC formation services comparison page.