How to Start an LLC with Northwest Registered Agent (2026)

Hey, my name is Dan and in this video I'll show you exactly how to start an LLC with Northwest Registered Agent. The process takes less than 15 minutes and I'll guide you step by step, helping you with each decision point so that you feel confident that you aren't making any mistakes. By the end, you'll be ready to create your LLC and we'll make sure you don't waste any money on services that you might not need. To get started and to make sure you get the best deal, use the special link you see on the screen below. You'll also find that link in the video description. No matter when you watch this video, using that link will ensure you get the best price when you file for your LLC with Northwest Registered Agent. To start off, select your state. I'll choose Pennsylvania. For most people, you should form your LLC in the state where you actually live and do business. Then click get started. On the next screen, you'll find tabs across the top, order, company, management, etc. These tabs will be our road map and they also match the chapters in this video so you will always know exactly where you are in the process. I'll explain the charges in the order summary found on the right in a minute. But first, let's fill out the order information down below. In this video, we are setting up an LLC. So, keep LLC selected. If you're curious about any options in the process, you can click the little question mark icons next to each option. These tool tips explain the basics in plain English. You can close them by clicking the X in the top right. If you've done some research and you've heard about electing to be taxed as an escorp, don't worry. You can handle that later. And I'll point out where that shows up in the flow. You'll see that mentioned in the tool tip under corporation and you still choose LLC here, not a corporation. In the next question, make sure you confirm the state that you selected on the prior screen. And then below you'll see your business formation filing options. Typically you'll see a standard option and then one or more expedited options. Standard is the cheapest choice and for most people that'll be totally fine. Expedited means your paperwork gets processed faster, but it does not change the LLC itself. It only changes how fast the state handles the filing. And these prices are dependent on the state. So, if I click Oregon, for example, there's no expedited option because the filing is already processed in one day, and it's less expensive than Pennsylvania. So, use your state's standard option if you're not in a rush. And if you need the LLC approved quickly for a bank account, a contract, or a deadline, then you can pay for expedited. I'll switch back to standard. And before we click continue, the order summary on the right updates as we go, and it lists the charges throughout the process. First, you have the basic package. This is the $39 service fee from Northwest Registered agent. Then you'll have your state processing fee. You can see the Pennsylvania ones here, but your fee and your total will likely differ from mine. When you're ready, click continue. That brings you to the company tab. First, enter your business name. I'm going to use Medics Media as an example. If you haven't already, you should check that the name is not already taken in your state. Most states have a business name search tool on the Secretary of State website, and you can find it by just googling business name search for your specific state. And if you plan to sell online or build a bigger brand, do a quick trademark search, too. In the US, you can search the US PTO database to see if a name is already trademarked. I'll link that resource in the description. Basically, you want something unique and you want to avoid confusion with another business. Next is a drop down for sending a copy of lawsuits and legal notices to your attorney. Hopefully, you'll never need this, but if you already have an attorney and you want them looped in, change this to yes, and then you can enter your attorney's email. If you don't have an attorney, just leave this as no. Next is business purpose. This is just a short description of what your LLC does. Keep it simple and one to two sentences about your main business activity is fine. For example, I'll use online marketing and content creation services. Scroll down to see what's below and you'll see here we have physical address that you want on record with the state. This can be public depending on your state. If you want more privacy, choose our registered agent address. That way, you're not putting your home address on public records. Next is the mailing address that you want on record with the state. This is the address the state will use for official mail. In many states, this address can also be listed publicly as part of your business record. If you want that privacy, choose our registered agent address. When you use Northwest's address, they can receive state mail for you and scan it to your online account, usually the same day it arrives. If you want the state to mail things directly to you, choose your mailing address. And if you want to use a different address like an office or a mailbox, choose specify address and then fill it in. I'll close this. Keep our registered agent address. And once you're done, click continue to proceed to the management tab. You can choose the management type. For most people, member managed is the right choice. Member managed means the owners run the LLC. If you're a solo founder or a small team, this is probably the option for you. Manager managed is usually for situations where the owners are not running the day-to-day operations. In that case, you pick a manager to make decisions for the business. If you're not sure, keep member managed selected. And as always, you can find some more information under the tool tip. Next, enter the details for member one. This is the owner of the LLC. If you're a soloreneur, you will only have one member. So, you will enter your name here. Then, choose the address to record with the state. I'll leave this as our registered agent address. Again, using that address is one of the benefits of using Northwest Registered agent. If your LLC has more than one owner, click add member and then enter the next member's information the same way. I'm going to close this because I only have one member. And once you're done, click continue. Now you're on the contact tab and this part is easy. Just enter your contact details like your name, phone number, and mailing address. Once you've entered your details, click continue to move on to the account tab. On the account tab, you create your login for Northwest Registered Agent. Enter your email address, then create and confirm your password. Once you've done that, click continue to proceed to the business identity tab. Business identity is basically your online basics. a domain name, a simple website, a business email address, and a business phone number. By default, Northwest Registered Agent offers a 90-day free trial for these services. If you leave this toggle on, you get the trial and you'll see pricing after the trial ends. Or if you toggle this off, you can pick only what you need. For example, you could choose just the phone service or the domain name. And if you want more detail, click the little question mark tool tips next to each option. Here is where you'll find some of the pricing info. Now, for a lot of people, I think it makes sense to get these things from companies that specialize in them. You may get more features or a better long-term price that way. For example, I recently made a tutorial on Hostinger's AI website builder. Hostinger is a web hosting provider, and their AI tools can help you get a site online quickly. If you choose a year plan or longer with someone like Hostinger, you can lock in a more affordable monthly price than what's shown here. Hostinger also offers business email, too, which I cover in that tutorial linked in the description below. For this tutorial, I don't need these add-ons from Northwest. So, I'm going to toggle business identity services off like it is here. And then I'll click continue. And that brings us to the optional items tab. This is where you have offers for a few add-ons, but let me walk you through them so you can turn on only what you need and save money by skipping what you don't. First is tax ID. This is your EIN or employer identification number, which is your federal tax ID number for the business. A lot of people get an EIN so they can open a business bank account, pay taxes, or hire employees later. If you want, you can get an EIN directly from the IRS yourself for free. Northwest can also do it for you, and it shows up here as an add-on if you toggle it on. If you already have a social security number, it's going to cost $50. If you don't have a social security number, it costs more because the process takes longer to file and it's more complex. I formed a multimember LLC years ago and I filed myself and got my EIN myself. The EIN is relatively quick and it's totally doable, but if I were doing this today, I would happily pay the $50 here and skip additional paperwork and to avoid any mistakes. Next is the S corporation election with the IRS. This does not mean you're forming a corporation today. you're still forming an LLC. This election is only about how the IRS taxes your LLC. Some businesses choose escorp taxation later because it can reduce taxes in certain situations. The trade-off is that it usually adds more paperwork and bookkeeping and often requires payroll if you pay yourself. If you're not sure, skip this for now. You can form the LLC today and talk to a tax adviser later to decide if an escorp election makes sense for your business. You don't have to elect this at the time that you create the LLC. Next is premium mail service. As your registered agent, Northwest will already accept and scan state mail and legal notices for you. Premium mail service is different. This is for all your regular business mail, too. If you turn it on, I'll toggle this here. You'll choose your service state, and then you'll learn about the service types and delivery methods. You'll have to choose between premium mail forwarding and a virtual office. And you can learn about them here with their pricing. And you'll choose between the delivery methods, physical forward or digital scan. One important note is that the premium mail service is not available in every state. So if you don't see your state as an option, that's why. And if you already have a good mailing setup, you can skip this. If you want to keep your home address private and keep all the business mail in one place, it can be worth considering. But I'll turn this off. Next is trademark filing. This is about protecting your brand name or logo. It's not required to form your LLC. And if I close this and enable it, you can see that the charge is $599. In the US, you can build some trademark rights just by using your name or logo in business, like on your website and in your marketing. But those rights are usually limited to the areas where you actually operate. Federal registration here is not required to form your LLC, but it can add stronger protections, including legal presumptions and the ability to enforce the mark nationwide for the goods or services listed in your registration. If you decide to do this now, you can also enable a trademark monitoring service. This will help you stay on top of potential infringement. But if you're not ready to decide, it's fine to skip this today and revisit it later once your name and branding are final. I'm not a lawyer, so if you're unsure, consider checking with the trademark attorney. Last, you'll see an option for DBA trade name filing. A DBA or doing business as is a trade name that you use publicly when it's different from your legal LLC name. So, if your LLC name and your public brand name are the same, you probably don't need a DBA. If you're not sure, skip it for now and you can always add it later. I'll close this. And once you've selected any add-ons that you want, click continue to move to the payment tab. Before you pay, take one last look at the order summary on the right. This is where you can see your basic package, your state fees, and any add-ons that you selected. One item that we haven't talked about yet is renewal filings. Renewal filings are the reports some states require to keep your LLC active and in good standing. Depending on the state, this might be an annual report, a bienial report, or something similar. This line shows zero today because there's no upfront fee to enroll. Later on, Northwest Registered agent will notify you ahead of time, and if you stay enrolled, they file for you and charge the state fees, plus a $100 service fee. You can also cancel this service in your online account if you do not want to do automatic filing. Just like the tax ID, this is one of those convenience fees that I would personally consider because it saves time and reduces the chance of missing a deadline. I'll close this. And if you click this tool tip next to what happens after I pay, you'll be logged into your account to review the information that you entered and you confirm it before they submit the filing. Then you can track the status and estimated completion inside your account. In this video, I'm not going to file for this demo LLC, but let me know if you have any questions. If you've just been following along and you're now ready to start the process, make sure you use the special link in the description. That will get you the best price that we have at the time for the basic package with Northwest Registered agent. Thanks for watching and congrats on starting your new