Do I need an LLC?Michigan LLC cost: year one and every year after
Short answer. For a solo operator in Michigan, the state cost confirmed on official sites is $50 to form (the Articles of Organization, with no added service charge found) and $25 a year after that (the annual statement, due February 15; the first is due the year after you form, and an LLC formed after September 30 skips the next February 15). The statement fee drops to $15 for statements paid after September 30, 2027, so from February 15, 2028. Michigan charges no annual LLC tax on a single-member LLC, but it does tax your profit at a flat 4.25% (2026) whether or not you have an LLC. A resident agent is required but has no price we could confirm. Forming in Wyoming instead costs more ($150 confirmed in the first year), because a Michigan resident still registers in Michigan for $50. Staying a sole proprietor has no state formation fees. City income taxes, local licenses and Michigan 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 2026-11-03. Estimates are shown apart and are never added to confirmed totals.
Michigan LLC vs Wyoming LLC vs sole proprietor
| Path | Year one | Each year after |
|---|---|---|
| A. LLC in Michigan | $50 confirmed ($50 Articles of Organization; add the $25 annual statement if its first deadline falls within your first 12 months, for example $75 for an LLC formed in June, but not for one formed in November, whose first statement is due two Februaries later) + Michigan resident agent: no figure found, not included | $25 confirmed (annual statement due February 15; $25 through September 30, 2027, then $15 per statute, so statements from February 15, 2028 cost $15) + Michigan resident agent if you do not serve as your own: no figure found, not included |
| B. LLC in Wyoming + register in Michigan | $150 confirmed ($100 Wyoming + $50 Michigan certificate of authority) + Wyoming resident agent and Michigan resident agent: no figures found, not included + the first $25 Michigan annual statement if its deadline falls within your first 12 months | $85 confirmed ($60 Wyoming minimum annual report + $25 Michigan annual statement, $75 once the Michigan fee drops to $15) + both resident agents, no figures found |
| C. Sole proprietor (baseline) | $0: free EIN from the IRS, separate bank account + $6 county clerk assumed name certificate if you use a business name other than your own (MCL 445.1) | $0 in state fees; no annual statement |
Not in any total above: a resident agent (no commercial price found), expedited processing, the optional assumed name certificate, your federal income and self-employment tax, Michigan income tax at 4.25% on your profit, bank fees, Michigan sales tax on software or digital products (not computed; see the section below), city income taxes such as Detroit's (not computed, not verified for freelancers), local licenses (not covered), and any attorney or CPA time.
Michigan LLC fees, line by line
| Fee | Amount | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Michigan Articles of Organization (Form CSCL/CD 700) | $50, no added service charge found | verified | LARA form CSCL/CD 700 (Rev. 07/25), MCL 450.5101 |
| Expedited processing: 24-hour, same day | +$50 (24-hour), +$100 (same day, received by 1 p.m. Eastern) for formation documents | verified, optional, not in totals | LARA form CSCL/CD 730 |
| Expedited processing: 2-hour, 1-hour | +$500 (2-hour, by 3 p.m.), +$1,000 (1-hour, by 4 p.m.) | not verified, optional, not in totals | Read only on the older Expedited Service Request CSCL/CD-272 (08-15 revision), not on the current form |
| Veterans fee waiver | Formation fee waived if a majority of initial membership interests are held by veterans | verified | MCL 450.5101(7) |
| Annual statement | $25 through September 30, 2027; $15 if paid after September 30, 2027 | verified | MCL 450.5101(1)(g), LARA FAQ |
| Late annual statement fee | no per-filing late fee found | not verified, not in totals | None found in MCL 450.4207, MCL 450.5101 or the LARA FAQ. This is not a statement that none exists. |
| Restoration of good standing | $50 certificate + $25 per missing annual statement (plus the current year's statement if filed on or after February 15) | verified | LARA: restore my LLC |
| Foreign LLC certificate of authority | $50 | verified | MCL 450.5101(1)(n); the LARA foreign LLC page and form were not read |
| Penalty for registering a foreign LLC late | no figure found | not verified, not in totals | The foreign LLC pages were not read |
| Change of resident agent or registered office | $5 | verified | MCL 450.5101(1)(i) |
| Michigan resident agent | no figure | unresolved | Required (MCL 450.4207(1)); private companies set the price. |
| Assumed name certificate | $6 at the county clerk for a sole proprietor; $25 with LARA for an LLC | verified | MCL 445.1, MCL 450.5101(1)(f) |
| Newspaper publication | none found for LLCs | not verified | The form instructions and fee list show no publication step; an absence is not proof |
| Corporate Income Tax, single-member LLC | not subject (disregarded) | verified | Michigan Treasury CIT FAQ, Corporate Tax Base 14 |
| Franchise or net worth tax, single-member LLC | none found | not verified | The CIT FAQ confirms disregarded treatment; no page about a franchise tax was read |
| 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 Michigan resident
A Michigan-based LLC formed in Wyoming must apply to Michigan for a certificate of authority ($50, MCL 450.5101(1)(n)) before transacting business there, and the foreign LLC files the same Michigan annual statement every year (MCL 450.4207(3)). It then pays Wyoming's $100 and $60 on top. Michigan taxes your profit at the same flat 4.25% wherever the LLC was formed. For a solo operator the Wyoming route costs more than forming in Michigan.
Michigan 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. Michigan's flat individual income tax rate is 4.25% for the 2026 tax year (Michigan Treasury notice, April 15, 2026), and Treasury classifies a disregarded entity as disregarded for the Corporate Income Tax too (Treasury CIT FAQ), so the LLC itself owes no Michigan income tax. Federal estimated tax for 2026 is due April 15, June 15, September 15 and January 15, 2027 (Form 1040-ES). Michigan's estimated payments use the same four dates, but its trigger is lower: the 2026 MI-1040ES says payments are generally required if you expect to owe more than $500 on your 2026 return. See the annual statement page for the February 15 filing.
What is different about forming in Michigan: software sales, city taxes and the first statement
Four Michigan-specific points for a solo app or SaaS founder, from Michigan government pages read on 2026-11-03. Informational only, not legal or tax advice.
- An LLC formed after September 30 skips the next February 15. The first annual statement is due February 15 of the year after formation, but MCL 450.4207(3) says an LLC formed after September 30 "need not file a statement on the February 15 immediately succeeding its formation." An LLC formed in November 2026 therefore files first on February 15, 2028. verified
- The annual statement fee drops from $25 to $15 in late 2027. MCL 450.5101(1)(g): "$15.00 if paid after September 30, 2027. Through September 30, 2027, the fee is $25.00." The LARA FAQ still says $25, so check the fee when you file. Our totals use $25. verified
- Sales tax on software depends on what you deliver. Treasury treats prewritten software as taxable when a copy of the code is delivered to the buyer; software the customer only accesses over the internet is generally not taxable, and partial downloads such as a desktop app are decided case by case (Revenue Administrative Bulletin 2023-10). A remote seller must register and collect once it has over $100,000 of gross sales or 200 or more separate transactions with Michigan customers in the previous calendar year (Treasury remote seller FAQ). The "generally not taxable" reading of remote-access SaaS is not verified on a page read directly, and none of this is in the totals. Confirm with Treasury before you sell to Michigan customers.
- Some Michigan cities have their own income tax. Detroit's resident rate is 2.4% and its nonresident rate is 1.2% in Treasury's wage withholding guide (City Tax Administration form 5469, TY2025). How Detroit taxes a freelancer's or LLC owner's net profit, the 2026 rate and other cities were not read. Not verified, not in any total.
Not verified and left out: whether the Limited Liability Company Act has any newspaper publication step, and any late fee for the annual statement.
What this Michigan page doesn't tell you
Whether you need an LLC yet, which line of the table applies to you, your own dates (the annual statement, 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.
Michigan LLC questions
How much does it cost to form an LLC in Michigan?
The confirmed state cost to form is $50: the Articles of Organization (form CSCL/CD 700) filing fee, with no added service charge found. The first $25 annual statement is due February 15 of the year after you form, so an LLC formed in November 2026 files its first one on February 15, 2028 and pays $50 in the first 12 months. A registered agent is required, but no commercial price was found, so none is included.
What does a Michigan LLC cost every year?
The confirmed recurring state fee is the annual statement: $25 through September 30, 2027 and $15 for statements paid after that date (first affected: February 15, 2028), filed online with LARA. Michigan charges no annual LLC tax on a disregarded single-member LLC. Our totals use $25. 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 Michigan resident?
No. A Michigan resident forming in Wyoming still registers the LLC in Michigan for $50, still files the Michigan annual statement, 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 Michigan?
Yes. Michigan requires a resident agent and a registered office in Michigan. The agent can be an individual who lives in Michigan at the registered office address, or a company with a business office there. No commercial agent price was found.
Does Michigan require newspaper publication for an LLC?
The Articles of Organization form instructions and the LARA fee list show no publication step, but we could not confirm on the statute that none exists, so this is not verified. Check with LARA 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. Michigan taxes the profit at a flat 4.25% for 2026 either way, and a disregarded LLC owes no Michigan Corporate Income Tax.