Northwest vs LegalZoom: which is better for your LLC and registered agent?
LegalZoom is the household name; Northwest is the specialist. They suit very different people — and on registered-agent price the gap is huge. Here's the honest breakdown.
Heads up: some links in this guide are affiliate links. If you sign up through them we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you — it never changes what we recommend or what you pay.
LegalZoom and Northwest Registered Agent both form LLCs and act as your registered agent — but they're built for different buyers. LegalZoom is a broad online legal marketplace with huge brand recognition. Northwest is a focused registered-agent and formation specialist known for privacy and clean pricing. The right pick depends on whether you want a one-service formation-plus-registered-agent setup or an ongoing legal-services platform.
Choose Northwest if you want a strong registered agent, real address privacy, predictable pricing, and a checkout without upsell pressure — its registered-agent renewal is roughly half LegalZoom's. Choose LegalZoom if you want a broad legal ecosystem (attorney advice, trademarks, ongoing legal documents) under one well-known brand and don't mind paying more. Choose DIY if you can meet your state's registered-agent rules yourself and want the lowest cash cost.
Pricing, side by side
| Northwest | LegalZoom | |
|---|---|---|
| Formation service fee | $39 | $0 (Basic) / $249 (Pro) / $299 (Premium) |
| State filing fee | At cost (varies) | At cost (varies) |
| Registered agent — year 1 | Included free | $249/yr (not included free) |
| Registered agent — renewal | ~$125/yr | $249/yr |
| EIN service | Available | $79 |
| Checkout upsells | Minimal | Many (plus trial auto-renewals) |
| Address privacy | Strong (Privacy by Default) | Limited |
| Ecosystem | Formation + registered agent focus | Broad legal marketplace |
The headline number: LegalZoom's registered agent is $249/year — the highest among the major services — while Northwest's is about $125/year after a free first year. Over a few years, that difference alone dwarfs the $39 Northwest charges to form. Confirm current prices on each provider's site before buying.
Where Northwest wins
- Registered-agent price. Roughly half LegalZoom's annual fee, with the first year free when you form.
- Privacy. Northwest's Privacy by Default puts their address on public filings instead of yours wherever the state allows; LegalZoom doesn't make privacy a core feature.
- No upsell funnel. Northwest's checkout is calm; LegalZoom's pushes add-ons and has been criticized for trial services that auto-renew.
- Predictable, flat pricing and US-based support that answers real questions.
Where LegalZoom wins
- Breadth of legal services. Attorney consultations, trademark registration, ongoing legal-document services, business licenses — a whole marketplace beyond formation.
- Brand recognition. If being with the best-known name matters to you, LegalZoom has formed millions of businesses.
- One-stop ongoing legal needs. If you expect to need lawyers and legal docs regularly, the ecosystem can be convenient.
If your needs go well beyond "form my LLC and be my registered agent" — for example you want bundled attorney access or trademark help — LegalZoom's marketplace is genuinely broader than Northwest's focused offering.
Who should choose neither (DIY)
If you have a physical address in your formation state, you're available during business hours, and you don't mind that address being on the public record, you can file directly with the state and be your own registered agent. That's the cheapest route — your only cost is the state fee. The trade-off is privacy and the responsibility of never missing legal mail. See our guide on that decision.
Bottom line
For most people whose main goal is forming an LLC and having a reliable, private, fairly-priced registered agent, Northwest is the better value — largely because LegalZoom's $249/year registered agent is so much higher. LegalZoom makes more sense if you specifically want its broad legal marketplace and brand. Read our full Northwest review, or compare it against the budget option in Northwest vs Bizee.