The short answer
- To form the LLC
- $200 to file the Certificate of Formation, plus $28 for the state name reservation.
- Every year after
- Nothing: Alabama has no annual report for LLCs. Business Privilege Tax return with the Department of Revenue; exempt when the computed tax is $100 or less.
- Five years, filing it yourself
- $228: the formation fee plus five years of the state's recurring fee, with no service fees.
Start your Alabama LLC
Our service fee and the Alabama filing & processing are itemized on the checkout review screen before you pay.
Start your Alabama LLCWhat's included
- Name availability check before we file
- Certificate of Formation prepared and filed with Alabama
- Submitted within 3 business days, or the same day as an option
- Approved documents emailed, plus a private order page
- Alabama's after-formation deadlines in writing
- A real person by email
Alabama LLC one-time costs
What Alabama charges once, when the LLC is formed, and the optional costs that arrive at the same time. The state fee is the same whether you file yourself or use a service.
- Amount
- $200
- Notes
- Paid to Alabama to file the Certificate of Formation. One time.
- Amount
- $28
- Notes
- Mandatory state name reservation, required by Alabama at formation.
- Amount
- Not offered
- Notes
- Alabama sells no faster review of the formation filing.
- Amount
- Free if you serve yourself; our agent service can be added in the application
- Notes
- Required in Alabama; a street address in the state.
- Amount
- Free if you write it, or our self-help template after checkout
- Notes
- Not filed with the state.
- Amount
- Our fee, itemized at checkout
- Notes
- Optional. Our fee and the Alabama filing & processing appear as separate lines before you pay.
State fees verified October 2026 and set by the state, not by us. Online filing prices; a few states charge a different amount on paper.
Alabama LLC ongoing costs
Alabama is one of the few states with no recurring report for LLCs, so the ongoing state cost is the tax picture below and nothing else.
- The state's rule
- None
- Notes
- No LLC annual report.
- The state's rule
- Set by the state
- Notes
- Business Privilege Tax return with the Department of Revenue; exempt when the computed tax is $100 or less.
State fees verified October 2026 and set by the state, not by us. Due rules, penalties and dissolution triggers are read from each state's statute or filing office page; the reinstatement figure is the state's own total at that point.
Alabama LLC annual fee
Alabama charges no annual fee for an LLC and requires no annual report. Alabama LLCs do not file an annual report with the Secretary of State (since Jan 1, 2024 the Secretary of State takes annual reports only from corporations). A Business Privilege Tax return may still apply for larger entities (exempt when the calculated tax is $100 or less). Formation still requires a name reservation; the state's $28 online reservation fee is included in Alabama filing & processing at checkout.
Other recurring obligations
- Alabama Business Privilege Tax initial return (Form BPT-IN). 2.5 months after formation. Not required if the computed tax is $100 or less, which is exempt for tax years beginning after 12/31/2023 under Act 2022-252. Most new small LLCs fall under this.
- Annual business privilege tax return (Form PPT). annually. only if the tax exceeds $100.
- Business license from the county probate judge or license commissioner. before doing business. varies by county and business type.
Alabama LLC filing fee: $200
The filing fee is what Alabama charges to file your Certificate of Formation, the document that creates the company. Alabama charges $200 plus a mandatory $28 state name reservation. It is the one cost nobody can avoid: it is the same whether you file directly with the state or hire a service, and no legitimate service can waive it. Which form Alabama uses, where it is filed and what it asks: how to register an LLC in Alabama.
Alabama's published processing time: Online filings are usually approved almost immediately.
Alabama does not sell expedited review of the formation filing.
Alabama also requires mandatory state name reservation at formation, $28, which is why the table above shows it separately. It is included in our Alabama filing & processing line.
By filing fee, Alabama ranks 46 of 51 jurisdictions, cheapest first; the median state charges $100.
Five-year Alabama LLC cost: $228
$228 to form, plus nothing recurring from the state, comes to $228 paid to Alabama over five years, assuming every report is filed on time. Business Privilege Tax return with the Department of Revenue; exempt when the computed tax is $100 or less. Taxes on the company's income, licenses and a registered agent service are separate.
See your exact Alabama total before you pay
Our service fee and the Alabama filing & processing are itemized on the checkout review screen before you pay, each on its own line.
What the Alabama state fee does not include
The filing fee buys the state's approval of the Certificate of Formation and nothing else. These are the costs that sit outside it.
- Registered agent. Alabama requires one, with a street address in the state. Serving as your own agent is free; the address becomes public record. Our registered agent service can be added in the application. Alabama registered agent requirements.
- Operating agreement. Not filed with the state and free if you write it yourself. Our self-help template is available after checkout.
- Business licenses and permits. Set by the city, county or licensing board for your line of business, not by the formation filing. Many Alabama LLCs need none; a restaurant, contractor or salon usually needs several.
- Taxes. An LLC's income is taxed through its owners' returns unless it elects otherwise, and sales tax or employer registrations are separate state accounts with no formation fee attached. Business Privilege Tax return with the Department of Revenue; exempt when the computed tax is $100 or less.
- Filing service. Our fee is itemized on the checkout review screen before you pay, with same-day submission as an option. The state fee is identical either way.
How to pay less for an Alabama LLC
- File the Certificate of Formation yourself. Alabama takes it online at sos.alabama.gov for the $200 state fee alone.
- Be your own registered agent if you have an Alabama street address and are there during business hours. The trade-off is privacy: the address goes on the public record.
- Write your own operating agreement. No state charges for it and Alabama does not file it.
- Form where you do business. An LLC that operates in Alabama but is formed elsewhere must register in Alabama as a foreign LLC anyway, paying Alabama's registration fee and its recurring report on top of the home state's.
How Alabama compares
By filing fee, Alabama is number 46 of 51 jurisdictions, cheapest first. The filing fee is paid once; the recurring line is what separates states over time.
- Filing fee
- $200
- Recurring
- None
- Five-year total
- $228
- Filing fee
- $125
- Recurring
- $138.75 a year
- Five-year total
- $818.75
- Filing fee
- $110
- Recurring
- $60 a year
- Five-year total
- $410
- Filing fee
- $50
- Recurring
- Free (Annual Report still required)
- Five-year total
- $50
- Filing fee
- $300 minimum
- Recurring
- $50 per member a year, $300 minimum to $3,000 maximum
- Five-year total
- $1,800 for one member
State fees verified October 2026 and set by the state, not by us.
Every state's fee is in LLC cost by state, and the case for and against forming elsewhere is in cheapest states to form an LLC.
Filing yourself vs. using us
Filing directly with Alabama costs only the state's own fee: $200 plus a mandatory $28 state name reservation. The state takes formations at sos.alabama.gov. Through us, you pay our service fee plus the Alabama filing & processing, for the name check, the Certificate of Formation prepared and submitted, the approved documents emailed to you and Alabama's deadlines in writing. Both lines are itemized on the checkout review screen before you pay.
Sources
State fees verified October 2026; page last updated November 1, 2026. The figures above are read from Alabama's own fee schedule, forms and statutes:
- sos.alabama.gov (sos.alabama.gov/business-entities/llcs)
- sos.alabama.gov (sos.alabama.gov/sites/default/files/2026-03/DomesticLLCFormation.pdf)
- sos.alabama.gov (sos.alabama.gov/sites/default/files/2022-01/domesticEntityNameReservation.pdf)
- sos.alabama.gov (sos.alabama.gov/sites/default/files/form-files/FeeSchedule.pdf)
- sos.alabama.gov (sos.alabama.gov/sites/default/files/2022-01/2021FeeSchedule.pdf)
- sos.alabama.gov (sos.alabama.gov/newsroom/secretary-state-reduce-online-business-filing-fees)
- revenue.alabama.gov (revenue.alabama.gov/faqs/what-is-an-initial-return-when-is-it-due/)
- revenue.alabama.gov (revenue.alabama.gov/individual-corporate/alabama-business-privilege-tax-and-corp...)
Standard Filings is a filing service, not a law firm. This page is general information from each state's published filing rules and fee schedules, not legal or tax advice.
Alabama LLC cost FAQ
How much does it cost to start an LLC in Alabama?+
Alabama charges $200 plus a mandatory $28 state name reservation. That is the state's own fee and it is the same whether you file yourself or use a service. If you have us file it, our service fee and the Alabama filing & processing are itemized on the checkout review screen before you pay.
Does Alabama charge an annual fee for an LLC?+
No. Alabama requires no annual report from LLCs and charges no annual fee. Alabama LLCs do not file an annual report with the Secretary of State (since Jan 1, 2024 the Secretary of State takes annual reports only from corporations). A Business Privilege Tax return may still apply for larger entities (exempt when the calculated tax is $100 or less). Formation still requires a name reservation; the state's $28 online reservation fee is included in Alabama filing & processing at checkout.
When is the Alabama LLC annual report due?+
Alabama has no annual report for LLCs, so there is no state due date to track; see the note on what the state asks for instead.
What is the late penalty for an Alabama LLC report?+
There is none, because Alabama has no LLC annual report. The obligations the state does have are described in the note above.
Is there a franchise tax in Alabama?+
Yes, in the sense that matters for budgeting: business Privilege Tax return with the Department of Revenue; exempt when the computed tax is $100 or less. It is assessed separately from the formation filing, by a different agency, and it is the state's charge, not ours.
How much is a registered agent in Alabama?+
Nothing from the state: Alabama charges no fee for naming a registered agent. Serving as your own agent is free if you have a street address in Alabama and are there during business hours; the address becomes public record. A commercial registered agent charges a yearly fee that the agent sets, in exchange for keeping its Alabama address on the record and forwarding what arrives.
Can I file the Alabama Certificate of Formation myself?+
Yes. Alabama accepts the Certificate of Formation directly from business owners at sos.alabama.gov, and you pay only the state's $200 fee plus the $28 state name reservation. Alabama's published processing time: Online filings are usually approved almost immediately.
What does your service add to the state fee?+
Our service fee covers a name availability check, your Certificate of Formation prepared and filed, the approved documents emailed to you, and Alabama's deadlines in writing. The Alabama filing & processing is a separate line, and both are itemized on the checkout review screen before you pay.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Fees change; confirm the current amount with Alabama before you rely on it.
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