2025 fees Colorado Secretary of State Rank #7 of 51

LLC Costs in Colorado (CO)

$185 all-in for your first year - $50 to file, $10 annual report, plus a registered agent. Colorado is $198 (52%) cheaper than the national average for first-year LLC costs.

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Colorado has one of the lowest annual report fees in the country at just $10. Very affordable state for LLC formation and maintenance.

Updated 2025 · Source: Colorado Secretary of State

Lower Articles filing fee

Lower Articles filing fee. $50 one-time SOS filing sits in the bottom third of Articles/formation fees nationwide. Colorado's $50 Articles filing fee sets the tone for a $185 first-year total, ranking #7 of 51. Fees are those published by the Colorado Secretary of State; registered agent is a $125/yr market-rate line, not a vendor quote.

According to the Colorado Secretary of State fee schedule; registered agent normalized at $125/yr. See methodology. How we calculate →

$50
One-time filing fee
$10 /yr
Annual report
$185
First-year total
#7 of 51
Cost rank (1 = cheapest)

Articles filing schedule card

Fee strip CO · Colorado SOS FY 2026 · rank #7

Colorado · FY 2026 · 2-3 weeks · no pub

  • ARTICLES Online filing
  • ARTICLES www.sos.state.co.us
  • ARTICLES 2-3 weeks
  • ARTICLES +$25 expedite
  • ARTICLES near Hawaii
  • ARTICLES 52% below avg

Cheap-third stack: stamps derive from this state's Secretary of State fee schedule, not a recommendation of where to form. Read with where this cheap-third stack ranks → · All 51 SOS fee rows →

1. Arizona$1752. Mississippi$1753. Kentucky$1804. Montana$1805. Colorado$1856. Hawaii$190
1. Arizona$1752. Mississippi$1753. Kentucky$1804. Montana$1805. Colorado$1856. Hawaii$190
First-year SOS-fee total for Colorado and nearest-cost peers. Source: each Secretary of State + 51-row aggregate.

Cost vs. speed: where Colorado sits among all 51 filing offices

Colorado is cheap to form but not fast: below-average cost, yet a 13-business-day wait that's slower than the national median -- the SOS fee total alone doesn't tell you how long you'll wait. 2×2 strategic matrix plotting 30 entities by First-year cost ($) (X) and Processing time (business days) (Y), with a crosshair dividing the plot into four quadrants. Slow & expensiveCheap but slowFast but priceyFast & cheap $0$500$1,000$1,500 0d10d20d30d First-year cost ($) Processing time (business days) Cost vs. speed: where Colorado sits among all 51 filing offices
Colorado is cheap to form but not fast: below-average cost, yet a 13-business-day wait that's slower than the national median -- the SOS fee total alone doesn't tell you how long you'll wait.
Colorado is cheap to form but not fast: below-average cost, yet a 13-business-day wait that's slower than the national median -- the SOS fee total alone doesn't tell you how long you'll wait. National median processing time: 6 business days; national average first-year cost: $383. Source: each state's Secretary of State published processing-time guidance + the 51-row SOS fee aggregate.

How the cheap-third $185 stack breaks down

How your $185 first-year total breaks down Registered agent is still the largest piece (68%) even though Colorado sits in the cheaper third overall.
  • State filing fee $50
  • Periodic Report (yr 1) $10
  • Registered agent $125
Cost Item Amount
State Filing Fee $50
Periodic Report $10
Registered Agent $125/yr
Expedited Filing (optional) $25
Total, First Year $185

Ongoing tax burden after formation

Colorado's effective property tax rate of 0.48% ranks among the lowest nationally (#5 of 51 lowest), a bigger long-run factor than the $185 formation cost above for any LLC that owns real estate.

Corporate income tax
4.4%
4.4% corporate tax rate, #12 of 51 lowest nationally
Effective property tax rate
0.48%
Of assessed property value, per year

Sources: Tax Foundation state corporate tax rates, Census ACS effective property tax rates.

Fee check: Verify current LLC fees with the Colorado Secretary of State at https://www.sos.state.co.us. Not legal or tax advice.

Colorado LLC quick facts (cheap third)

Filing Fee $50
Annual Report $10 /yr
Processing Time 2-3 weeks
Expedited $25 → 1-3 business days
Online Filing Available
First-Year Total $185
File with Colorado SOS

Similar Cost States

Arizona $175 Mississippi $175 Missouri $175 New Mexico $175

Still-cheaper peers

Even cheaper first-year SOS stacks than CO (already bottom-third):

New Mexico $175 Kentucky $180 Montana $180

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified. Report a data error on this page.

Sources used on this page
  • Colorado Secretary of State - LLC filing fee, annual-report requirement, and processing time. www.sos.state.co.us
  • Federation of Tax Administrators - cross-check of state fee and tax figures. taxadmin.org
LLC fees and requirements sourced from the Colorado Secretary of State. See our methodology for details.

Verify with the Colorado Secretary of State →