Do I need an LLC?Georgia LLC cost: year one and every year after
Short answer. For a solo operator in Georgia, the state cost confirmed on official sites is $110 to form (the Articles of Organization, a $100 filing fee plus a $10 service charge) and $60 a year after that (the annual registration, due January 1 to April 1; the first is due the year after you form). Georgia has no franchise tax on a single-member LLC, but it does tax your profit at a flat 4.99% (2026) whether or not you have an LLC. A registered agent is required but has no price we could confirm. Forming in Wyoming instead costs more ($335 confirmed in the first year), because a Georgia resident still registers in Georgia for $235. Staying a sole proprietor has no state formation fees. City and county business taxes and Georgia sales tax on software are not computed in the totals.
Informational only. Not legal or tax advice. Confirmed means read on an official government page on 2026-10-31. Estimates are shown apart and are never added to confirmed totals.
Georgia LLC vs Wyoming LLC vs sole proprietor
| Path | Year one | Each year after |
|---|---|---|
| A. LLC in Georgia | $110 confirmed ($110 Articles of Organization; add the $60 annual registration if its first deadline falls within your first 12 months, for example $170 for an LLC formed in November) + Georgia registered agent: no figure found, not included | $60 confirmed (annual registration, January 1 to April 1) + Georgia registered agent if you do not serve as your own: no figure found, not included |
| B. LLC in Wyoming + register in Georgia | $335 confirmed ($100 Wyoming + $235 Georgia certificate of authority) + Wyoming registered agent and Georgia registered agent: no figures found, not included + the first $60 Georgia annual registration if its deadline falls within your first 12 months | $120 confirmed ($60 Wyoming minimum annual report + $60 Georgia annual registration) + both registered agents, no figures found |
| C. Sole proprietor (baseline) | $0: free EIN from the IRS, separate bank account + county trade name registration if you use a business name: not checked, not in the total | $0 in state fees; no annual registration |
Not in any total above: a registered agent (no commercial price found), expedited processing, a county trade name registration, your federal income and self-employment tax, Georgia income tax at 4.99% on your profit, bank fees, Georgia sales tax on software or digital products (not computed in the totals; sourced rules are in the section above), city and county business taxes and licenses (not covered), and any attorney or CPA time.
Georgia LLC fees, line by line
| Fee | Amount | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Georgia Articles of Organization (Form CD 030 or online) | $110 ($100 filing fee + $10 service charge) | verified | Georgia SOS: Create or Form a New Domestic Entity |
| Expedited processing | +$120 (2 business days), +$275 (same business day); +$1,200 (one hour, by mail) | verified, optional, not in totals | Georgia SOS |
| Annual registration | $60 ($50 filing fee + $10 service charge) | verified | Georgia SOS: How to File Annual Registration |
| Late annual registration penalty | $25 | verified | Georgia SOS |
| Reinstatement of an administratively dissolved LLC | $260 ($250 + $10 service charge) | verified | Georgia SOS |
| Foreign LLC certificate of authority (Form CD 241) | $235 ($225 filing fee + $10 service charge) | verified | Georgia SOS: Register a Foreign Entity |
| Penalty for registering a foreign LLC late | a $500 penalty was reported in a search summary of the fee schedule | not verified, not in totals | The fee schedule PDF could not be read; confirm with the Secretary of State |
| Georgia registered agent | no figure | unresolved | Required to be located in Georgia (Georgia SOS); private companies set the price. |
| Newspaper publication | none found for LLCs | not verified | The SOS LLC guide lists no publication step; an absence is not proof |
| Net worth tax, single-member LLC | not subject | verified | Georgia DOR net worth tax FAQ |
| Wyoming Articles of Organization | $100 | verified | Wyoming SOS fee schedule, effective July 1, 2026 |
| Wyoming annual report license tax | $60 minimum | verified | Same schedule: $60 or two-tenths of one mill on Wyoming assets, whichever is greater. |
| Wyoming registered agent | no figure | unresolved | Private companies set the price. Wyoming requires an agent (seen in a search excerpt of an SOS guide, not read in full). |
| EIN | $0 | verified | IRS: "You never have to pay a fee for an EIN." |
Why Wyoming does not help a Georgia resident
A Georgia-based LLC formed in Wyoming must register in Georgia ($235) before doing business there: "In order to expand your business into Georgia, you must first register your foreign ... limited liability company ... with the Georgia Secretary of State" (Georgia SOS). It then files the same $60 Georgia annual registration every year, and pays Wyoming's $100 and $60 on top. Georgia taxes your profit at the same flat 4.99% wherever the LLC was formed. For a solo operator the Wyoming route costs more than forming in Georgia.
Georgia taxes: what an LLC does and does not change
The IRS treats a single-member LLC as "disregarded as separate from its owner": you report profit on Schedule C and pay self-employment tax as a sole proprietor would. Georgia's flat income tax rate is 4.99% for 2026 (Georgia DOR), and a single-member LLC is not subject to the Georgia net worth tax (Georgia DOR). Federal estimated tax for 2026 is due April 15, June 15, September 15 and January 15, 2027 (Form 1040-ES). See the annual registration page for the January 1 to April 1 filing.
What is different about forming in Georgia: software sales and the foreign LLC route
Three Georgia-specific points for a solo app or SaaS founder, each from a Georgia government page read on 2026-10-31. Informational only, not legal or tax advice.
- Georgia taxes software by how it is delivered, not by what it is. A Department of Revenue letter ruling says software delivered electronically is "not subject to sales or use tax" when the customer gets no copy in a tangible medium and no right to one, and that software-related services such as updates and technical support are not taxed either. The same ruling says the invoice or contract must show the delivery method, or delivery is presumed to be tangible and you carry the burden of proving otherwise. A second ruling says charges for hosting data and "access to online/cloud information, data, and software" are not subject to the tax. A 2024 ruling says prewritten software sold on a physical medium is taxable, and that Georgia has no multiple points of use exemption. Letter rulings bind only the taxpayer who asked, so this is a guide to the Department's reading, not a promise for your product. Sources: LR SUT-2016-09, LR SUT-2019-09, LR SUT-2024-02.
- A Wyoming LLC needs no home-state good-standing certificate to register in Georgia. The Secretary of State's foreign registration guide asks a foreign corporation for an original certificate of existence or good standing no more than 90 days old, but its foreign LLC checklist lists no such document. Both routes still need a registered agent located in Georgia, so a Wyoming agent does not cover it. Source: Georgia SOS foreign entity guide.
- A lapse costs a foreign LLC a second filing fee. The same guide says a foreign entity that misses its annual registration is subject to revocation of its certificate of authority, and a revoked entity "must re-qualify" with a new application and fee. The fee in the guide is $235, the same as the first registration. For a Georgia-formed LLC the SOS annual registration page names administrative dissolution instead, with reinstatement at $260 on the domestic LLC guide. Sources: foreign entity guide, annual registration.
Not verified and left out: a $500 late penalty for a foreign LLC that starts business before registering (the fee schedule PDF returns a 403 to scripted fetches), and whether Georgia's newspaper notice rule applies to LLCs.
What this Georgia page doesn't tell you
Whether you need an LLC yet, which line of the table applies to you, your own dates (the annual registration, estimated taxes), or whether to ask a CPA about an S-corp. The calculator takes your answers and returns a verdict, your numbers and a dated checklist you can download as a PDF and calendar file.
Georgia LLC questions
How much does it cost to form an LLC in Georgia?
The confirmed state cost to form is $110: a $100 filing fee plus a $10 service charge for the Articles of Organization, online or by mail. The first $60 annual registration is due by April 1 of the year after you form, so an LLC formed in November 2026 pays $170 in the first 12 months. A registered agent is required, but no commercial price was found, so none is included.
What does a Georgia LLC cost every year?
The confirmed recurring state fee is $60, the annual registration filed with the Secretary of State between January 1 and April 1. Georgia has no franchise tax or net worth tax on a disregarded single-member LLC. A registered agent costs extra if you do not serve as your own, and that price is not included.
Is a Wyoming LLC cheaper for a Georgia resident?
No. A Georgia resident forming in Wyoming still registers the LLC in Georgia for $235 ($225 plus a $10 service charge), still files the $60 Georgia annual registration, and also pays Wyoming's $100 formation fee and $60 minimum annual report, so the total is higher.
Do I need a registered agent in Georgia?
Yes. Georgia requires a registered agent located in Georgia, with a physical street address where an individual can be reached in person. No commercial agent price was found, and you can serve as your own agent if you meet that requirement.
Does Georgia require newspaper publication for an LLC?
The Georgia Secretary of State's LLC formation guide lists no publication step, and secondary sources say Georgia's newspaper notice applies to corporations rather than LLCs. We could not confirm this on the statute, so it is not verified. Check with the Secretary of State or an attorney.
Do I pay less income tax with an LLC?
Not by default. A single-member LLC is disregarded for federal tax, so you report profit on Schedule C and pay self-employment tax as a sole proprietor would. Georgia taxes the profit at a flat 4.99% for 2026 either way.