2025 fees Illinois Secretary of State Rank #35 of 51

LLC Costs in Illinois (IL)

$350 all-in for your first year - $150 to file, $75 annual report, plus a registered agent. Illinois is $33 (9%) cheaper than the national average for first-year LLC costs.

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Annual report is due before the first day of the LLC's anniversary month. Illinois has the Chicago area which offers access to major markets and talent.

Updated 2025 · Source: Illinois Secretary of State

Higher Articles filing fee

Higher Articles filing fee. $150 one-time SOS filing sits in the top third of Articles/formation fees nationwide. Illinois's $150 Articles filing fee sets the tone for a $350 first-year total, ranking #35 of 51. Fees are those published by the Illinois Secretary of State; registered agent is a $125/yr market-rate line, not a vendor quote.

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

$150
One-time filing fee
$75 /yr
Annual report
$350
First-year total
#35 of 51
Cost rank (1 = cheapest)

Published SOS fee schedule

Fee strip IL · Illinois SOS FY 2026 · rank #35

Illinois · FY 2026 · 10 business days · no pub

  • PROC Online filing
  • VS-AVG www.ilsos.gov
  • ARTICLES 10 business days
  • BIENNIAL +$100 expedite
  • SCHEDULE near Kansas
  • REPORT 9% below avg

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

1. Connecticut$3252. New Hampshire$3253. New Jersey$3254. Oregon$3255. Kansas$3406. Illinois$350
1. Connecticut$3252. New Hampshire$3253. New Jersey$3254. Oregon$3255. Kansas$3406. Illinois$350
First-year SOS-fee total for Illinois and nearest-cost peers. Source: each Secretary of State + 51-row aggregate.

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

Illinois is cheap to form but not fast: below-average cost, yet a 10-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 Illinois sits among all 51 filing offices
Illinois is cheap to form but not fast: below-average cost, yet a 10-business-day wait that's slower than the national median -- the SOS fee total alone doesn't tell you how long you'll wait.
Illinois is cheap to form but not fast: below-average cost, yet a 10-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 dear-third $350 stack breaks down

How your $350 first-year total breaks down State filing fee drives 43% of a top-third first-year total.
  • State filing fee $150
  • Annual Report (yr 1) $75
  • Registered agent $125
Cost Item Amount
State Filing Fee $150
Annual Report $75
Registered Agent $125/yr
Expedited Filing (optional) $100
Total, First Year $350

Ongoing tax burden after formation

Illinois's effective property tax rate of 2.01% ranks among the highest nationally, an ongoing cost that can exceed the $350 formation fee above within a year or two for a property-owning LLC.

Corporate income tax
9.5%
9.5% corporate tax rate, #49 of 51 lowest nationally
Effective property tax rate
2.01%
Of assessed property value, per year

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

Fee check: Dear-third first-year stack, verify current Illinois SOS fees before filing at https://www.ilsos.gov. Not legal or tax advice.

Illinois SOS fee strip (high filing)

Filing Fee $150
Annual Report $75 /yr
Processing Time 10 business days
Expedited $100 → 24 hours
Online Filing Available
First-Year Total $350
File with Illinois SOS

Similar Cost States

Indiana $251 Pennsylvania $257 Louisiana $260 Georgia $275

Lower-cost escapes

Looking to file lighter than top-third IL? These states charge less in year one:

Rhode Island $325 South Dakota $325 Kansas $340

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

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

Verify with the Illinois Secretary of State →