Delaware or Nevada for your LLC?
These are the two states founders choose for reasons other than price, and both cost real money — $1,010 against $1,475 over three years. The question is whether you are buying investor familiarity or privacy, because they are not the same purchase.
Side by side
Verified July 28, 2026
| Delaware | Nevada | |
|---|---|---|
| State filing fee | $110 one-time | $425 one-time |
| Annual cost | $300 flat annual tax | About $350 in combined annual fees |
| Three-year total, state charges | $1,010 | $1,475 |
| Processing | 1–3 business days | 1–3 business days |
| What you are actually buying | Investor familiarity and the Court of Chancery's body of case law | Privacy statutes and no state income tax |
| US venture investors | Expect it, and often require it before a priced round | Unusual and occasionally a friction point in diligence |
| Owner privacy | Members are not listed in the certificate of formation | Strong statutory privacy protections |
| Cheaper alternative that does the same jobThis is the honest weak point of the Nevada case. | None if you are raising — this is the point of Delaware | Wyoming, at $100 and $60 a year, for comparable privacy |
Which one fits you
Choose Delaware if
You intend to raise from US venture investors. Delaware is not a preference in that world, it is close to a precondition — investors' documents assume it, their counsel is fluent in it, and converting later costs more than starting there. If you are not raising, you are paying $300 a year for a courtroom you will never enter.
Choose Nevada if
You have a specific reason that points to Nevada's particular statutes, ideally one your lawyer identified rather than a formation site. We say that carefully: for privacy alone, Wyoming provides a comparable outcome at $100 and $60 a year against Nevada's $425 and $350. Unless something in Nevada law specifically applies to you, the cheaper state usually wins.
Delaware's premium is real and narrow
The Court of Chancery is a business court with centuries of case law and no juries, and that predictability is what investors are paying for. It matters enormously in a disputed acquisition or a fight between shareholders. It matters not at all to a solo founder billing clients from Manila, who is paying $300 a year for an option they will never exercise.
Nevada is the harder case to make
Nevada markets strong privacy and no state income tax. Both claims are true. The difficulty is that Wyoming offers comparable privacy and no income tax for roughly a quarter of the cost, and has done since it invented the LLC in 1977. We sell Nevada filings and we would still tell you to look at Wyoming first, because on the published numbers that is where the comparison points.
The three-year arithmetic
Delaware: $110 to file plus $300 a year, so $1,010 across three years. Nevada: $425 plus roughly $350 a year, so about $1,475. Wyoming, for reference, is $280. If neither the investor argument nor a specific Nevada statute applies to you, you are looking at a $700 to $1,200 premium over three years for something you have not identified a use for.
What this page does not cover
These figures are state charges only, excluding Registered Agent service and our fee. Neither state's tax treatment changes what you owe where you live. And if you are raising venture capital, the entity question is one to put to the investors' counsel rather than to a formation service — including this one.
Common questions
Do I need Delaware if I am not raising money?
Almost certainly not. Delaware's advantage is legal predictability in disputes and investor familiarity in financings. Without either in prospect, the $300 annual tax buys you nothing a $60 Wyoming report does not, and you can convert to Delaware later if you do start raising.
Is Nevada better than Wyoming for privacy?
Not in a way we can demonstrate on the published rules. Both keep owner information off the public filing, and Wyoming costs $100 to file with $60 a year against Nevada's $425 and roughly $350. If your lawyer has identified a specific Nevada statute that applies to you, follow that advice — otherwise the cost difference is hard to justify.
Can I move from Wyoming to Delaware later?
Yes. Founders commonly form cheaply, then convert or reincorporate when a financing is actually on the table and investors' counsel is directing the structure. Paying Delaware rates for years in anticipation of a round that has not happened is the more expensive mistake.
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Wyoming filing, Registered Agent and EIN guidance from $249 plus the state fee. Filed in one to three business days.
RazorFile files companies. We are not a law firm or tax advisor, and nothing on this page is legal or tax advice.