ZenBusiness is a genuine company formation service that has swiftly established itself as a reliable, user-friendly solution with customized packages and a positive user experience.
It provides the most vital elements, such as registered agent services, formation document preparation and filing, and excellent customer service.
ZenBusiness is ideal for both experienced and first-time entrepreneurs seeking to establish an LLC, particularly those in creative sectors.
Why Trust Our ZenBusiness Review?
Why should you believe what our staff says about ZenBusiness? Our team of qualified attorneys reviewed every tool that ZenBusiness provides for hours, including setting up accounts, completing the formation procedure, and using customer support.
Our evaluation is based on our own experience with ZenBusiness and how it stacks up against other formation businesses. Are you curious to learn more? See our methods at the article’s conclusion.
ZenBusiness Overview
Founded in 2015, ZenBusiness is a Texas-based public benefit corporation with venture capital funding.
The creators of ZenBusiness, according to their website, want to alleviate the burden of forming and managing an LLC or any other kind of organization, particularly for inexperienced small business owners.
ZenBusiness offers worry-free services, quick and easy company creation, and knowledgeable assistance to register a business correctly and on time.
Customers may get a sense of the many resources and advice included in the ZenBusiness LLC package to establish a business, as well as other features that can be helpful to maintain that firm, by quickly browsing the company website.
ZenBusiness LLC Features
We’ve spent over 250 hours reviewing LLC formation services including ZenBusiness. We’ll walk you through the most significant ZenBusiness features and describe our experience using them.
Formation Process
ZenBusiness uses an interactive chat feature to form your LLC. The agent asks you a series of questions and logs your responses to begin putting together your LLC paperwork.
One of the first pieces of information you’ll provide is your proposed LLC name, and ZenBusiness performs a preliminary search to make sure your name is available in your state.
You’ll also provide contact information, a very brief description of what you plan to offer with your LLC, and information about other members, if any, of your LLC.
(For LLC purposes, owners are referred to as “members.”). ZenBusiness uses this information to create your “articles of organization” (sometimes called a “certificate of formation” or “articles of incorporation”) which is the critical document which must be filed to form your business.
You’ll set up an account on the ZenBusiness website and pay for your order before the formation documents are filed.
Once your account is set up, you’ll review your information one more time and provide any missing information before ZenBusiness queues your paperwork to be filed.
You may not be able to change information in your filing after you’ve submitted it to ZenBusiness and before they submit it to the state for official filing. However, you can make amendments to your LLC formation documents after they’re certified.
Turnaround Time
Processing times largely depend on the time frame of the state in which you’re filing. ZenBusiness takes about 2-3 weeks to complete the formation process for you at their standard filing speed. The Pro and Premium plans offer formation within 1-2 days.
ZenBusiness Registered Agent Services
Every state requires each LLC to appoint a “registered agent” (sometimes called a “resident agent”) to serve as a physical address and point of contact where legal and tax documents can be delivered during business hours.
LLC members can serve as the registered agent, but may not want to as it requires being present at the registered address during business hours. A business entity can serve as a registered agent, as long as it’s not the LLC itself.
Most LLC formation companies offer registered agent services, and ZenBusiness is no different. However, while other companies offer a first free year or registered agent services for as low as $49, ZenBusiness’s registered agent service costs $199 per year from the start.
Operating Agreement Template
An operating agreement outlines the business practices and policies your LLC will follow. It’s a contract signed by members of the LLC that describes the ownership and management structure and distribution of profits, losses, rights, duties and voting policies.
It can describe what happens if someone dies or leaves the LLC and what can cause the LLC to dissolve.
A handful of states require LLCs to have operating agreements on file, but most states don’t. However, it’s a good business practice to have one. Otherwise, default state laws will apply to your LLC which may not be exactly how you want it to run.
Other Business Services
Like other formation companies, ZenBusiness offers extra services to help with formation and maintenance of your LLC. While not required to actually file your LLC paperwork with the state, these services are all but essential to setting your LLC up for success.
EIN Application
For many LLCs (those with more than one member or any employees), an employer identification number (EIN) (also called a federal tax ID number) is required from the IRS.
Many formation services will request this number on your behalf. It’s free and relatively easy to request from the IRS website.
ZenBusiness can request an EIN for you for $99. This service is included in the Pro and Premium plans. While it’s possible to request an EIN on your own for free, some people may find it worth the cost to have ZenBusiness handle the process for them completely.
“Worry-Free Compliance” Service
ZenBusiness offers help with ongoing compliance requirements, including reminders of annual filing deadlines, to keep your business operational and legitimate. It is free for the first year ($199 after) or is included in the Pro or Premium plans.
ZenBusiness can take care of your necessary annual reporting obligations and paperwork. This helps prevent your business from getting fined or losing its liability protection.
An annual report service can take ongoing stress off of you so you can focus on growing your business.
Document Templates
The ZenBusiness LLC formation service gives clients access to templates for important legal documents that might be needed to conduct business, such as operating agreements, corporate bylaws and banking resolutions.
These documents are all accessible 24/7 via your personalized online dashboard, which you can try for free.
Website and Email Setup
If your business needs a website, ZenBusiness can set one up for you. The company can also register a domain name and set up a business email address for you.
Banking
ZenBusiness has partnerships with Bank of America for opening a business bank account and Chase for obtaining a business credit card.
It offers special deals for ZenBusiness users specifically, including several types of credit cards with different perks, and suggestions for which one to apply for depending on your specific needs.
ZenBusiness Customer Service
If you’re using a formation service — especially for the first time — you’re going to have questions at some point in the startup process.
Every formation company offers some type of customer service. Is it actually helpful, or are you left in the dark? Read about our experience with ZenBusiness’s customer service.
How to Get in Touch
Customer service is accessible no matter what package you choose. Even with a $0 basic package, you can connect quickly with a customer service representative and get your questions answered.
You can get in touch with ZenBusiness in one of several ways:
- Email at [email protected] or [email protected]
- ZenBusiness phone number is 1-844-4-ZENBIZ (1-844-493-6249)
- Chat with a live agent on the ZenBusiness website
Response Accuracy and Timeliness
The automated chat responses were not as accurate as we needed, initially. However, it is easy to connect with a live agent within minutes to receive an accurate response to your question.
How ZenBusiness Compares
Among the best LLC services, how does ZenBusiness compare? We’ve done all the legwork for you. Check out our comparison table and read more for details on how the different LLC formation service providers measure up to each other.
Basic Package Comparison
| Pricing accurate as of February 2024 | ZenBusiness | LegalZoom | Bizee | Swyft Filings |
| Cost | $0 | $79 | $0 | $49 |
| Registered Agent | $199 | $299 | Free for first year | $596 |
| Operating Agreement | $125 | $99 | $40 | $35 |
| EIN Registration Fee | $99 | $79 | $70 | $79 |
| Processing Time | 2 to 3 weeks | 20 days | 3 to 12 weeks | 7 to 10 days |
ZenBusiness vs. LegalZoom
LegalZoom is an online legal technology company that helps its customers get the legal help they need without necessarily having to find a lawyer.
Though LegalZoom offers more than just business formation services, we’ll only be looking at that feature to fairly compare its services to those of ZenBusiness.
Like ZenBusiness, LegalZoom offers three pricing tiers for its LLC filing services — Economy, Standard and Express Gold — but the basic ZenBusiness LLC costs less.
For example, ZenBusiness’s Starter plan will cost first-time business filers $0 and comes with a two- to three-week turnaround time, while LegalZoom’s Economy plan is $79 and has a 20-day processing time window.
When it comes to customer satisfaction, ZenBusiness and LegalZoom both appear to have won over customers: Each entity has “Excellent” ratings on Trustpilot, but ZenBusiness has a slight edge with a rating average of 4.7 stars from over 13,000 reviews. LegalZoom has an average rating of 4.6 stars from over 3,000 reviews.
(It’s worth noting that LegalZoom’s reviews are from clients who may have used the company for legal services that may not have had anything to do with running a business.)
Based on price and customer reviews, we would recommend ZenBusiness over LegalZoom for anyone looking for a simple business formation service.
On the other hand, if you require legal assistance or additional business services, such as intellectual property registration, you may want to check out LegalZoom.
ZenBusiness vs. Bizee
Bizee (Powered by Incfile) is more like ZenBusiness than LegalZoom because Bizee’s sole focus is to help entrepreneurs form their businesses.
The Bizee website boasts that the company has “the fastest and easiest way to set up your LLC” and promises to be “simple, affordable and supportive.”
Looking at cost and features, Bizee definitely poses tougher competition for ZenBusiness compared to other business formation services. Bizee is undoubtedly faster, promising customers that order processing will start on the next business day at no extra cost.
And speaking of cost, it’s hard to look past Bizee’s first-year special price of free — yes, free — for their basic Silver package. Silver includes LLC filing, a registered agent and other business formation services for just the cost of the state fee, and will automatically renew annually for $119 (ZenBusiness’s Starter package does not renew).
Neither Bizee’s Silver package nor ZenBusiness’s Starter package include an operating agreement document or EIN. However, the ZenBusiness Pro and Premium plans include an EIN.
For $125, you can add an operating agreement to the ZenBusiness LLC Starter package; for an additional $99, you can add an EIN. Bizee’s Silver customers can add an operating agreement to their package for $40 and an EIN for $70.
Next, we turned to customer reviews. ZenBusiness has more “Excellent” reviews than Bizee on Trustpilot. Of ZenBusiness’s more than 10,000 reviews, 86% were Excellent and only 3% were “Bad.”
On the other hand, of Bizee’s more than 15,000 reviews, 84% were “Excellent” and 4% were “Bad.” That being said, Bizee has more than 72,000 reviews on Shopper Approved and maintains an impressive rating of 4.8 out of 5 stars. (ZenBusiness is not rated on this site.)
Both businesses have over 4 stars based on Better Business Bureau reviews, but ZenBusiness has had over 150 complaints filed in the past three years compared to Bizee’s over 200 complaints.
Based on customer reviews, we may recommend using ZenBusiness over Bizee for your business needs. However, Bizee is a more affordable choice, and we’ve found that both options are great for LLC formation.
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ZenBusiness vs. Swyft Filings
Another competitor in the online business formation space is Swyft Filings, founded in Houston in 2015. According to its website, Swyft Filings will help you “start your business with confidence,” and promises to be affordable, fast and simple. Compared to other services, Swyft Filings offers decent prices and quick processing times.
At a quick glance, Swyft Filings’ Basic package looks pretty comparable to the ZenBusiness LLC Starter. Swyft Filings’ Basic costs $49 and promises a faster 7 to 10 business day processing window compared to ZenBusiness 2 to 3 weeks.
The biggest downside is that Swyft Filings’ low-tier package does not include a registered agent or an operating agreement. If you need Swyft Filings to act as your registered agent, it will cost you an additional $149 per quarter; adding on the operating agreement costs $35.
Another downside is that Swyft Filings’ customer service is only available Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. CST, whereas ZenBusiness’s customer service is available Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., and on Sundays from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. CST
It seems Swyft Filings and ZenBusiness both have thousands of happy clients, with tons of positive reviews from customers and “Excellent” ratings on TrustPilot. ZenBusiness’s rating has more weight to it, with over 10,000 reviews, compared to Swyft Filings’ just over 6,000 reviews.
If you’re new to the business formation process and think you’ll benefit from a provider that has extended support hours, you might want to choose the ZenBusiness LLC option. That being said, both ZenBusiness and Swyft Filings are solid choices for LLC formation. Read our full Swyft Filings review here.
FAQ: ZenBusiness LLC Formation Review
Should I use ZenBusiness for my LLC?
If you’re an already established or aspiring entrepreneur who needs to register an LLC or corporation, ZenBusiness is the best option. For $0 plus state fees (for the first year), you can get started with the basic ZenBusiness LLC package and be in business after a relatively short processing period of two to three weeks.
On the other hand, if you already have a business but need a registered agent, ZenBusiness offers registered agent services starting at $199 a year. You would have peace of mind knowing that a ZenBusiness representative will make sure your business is in good standing with the government.
ZenBusiness may not be the best option if you need a bit more in terms of legal services when it comes to your business. If that’s you, you may want to opt for a company like LegalZoom or LegalShield that can help you form your LLC or corporation and provide you with legal help.
However, if you want a little inspiration to help get your business off the ground, ZenBusiness offers unique resources to spark your creativity and learn about your strengths when it comes to operating a business.
What is ZenBusiness’s refund policy?
ZenBusiness offers a 100% refund minus the costs already incurred in the business formation process. Unlike some other LLC formation companies, ZenBusiness doesn’t have a 100% satisfaction guarantee offering money back for erroneous filings, however their customer satisfaction score ranks as high or higher than companies with such a guarantee.
How much does ZenBusiness cost?
ZenBusiness offers three package tiers at $0 (which renews at $199 after the first year), $199 and $299, plus state filing fees. All packages are customizable with optional add-ons which would increase the price. ZenBusiness registered agent services aren’t included in the packages and cost an additional $199 per year.
Is ZenBusiness easy to use?
Yes! Our review of ZenBusiness confirmed that the website has an intuitive interface with a simple and enjoyable user experience.
How long has ZenBusiness been around?
ZenBusiness was started in 2015 and has quickly established itself as one of the top-ranked LLC formation services. It’s a public benefit corporation, which is a type of for-profit corporation that aims to make a positive impact on society.
