Wyoming leads on privacy, asset protection, and cost. Delaware leads on the venture-capital and Court of Chancery track. Both keep members off the public record.
By Shafwan Ahmed, Anonymousllc.co
| Dimension | Wyoming | Delaware |
|---|---|---|
| Anonymousllc.co price | $397 all-in | $407 total ($297 + $110 state) |
| State filing fee | $100 | $110 |
| Annual cost | $60 min license tax | $300 flat franchise tax |
| Annual due date | Formation-anniversary month | June 1 |
| Anonymity on state record | Full | Full |
| Charging order (single-member) | Exclusive remedy (§ 17-29-503(a)) | Strong |
| Court of Chancery | No | Yes |
| VC preference | Not standard | Industry standard |
| State income tax | None | None (LLC) |
| Series LLC | Yes | Yes |
| DAPT (asset-protection trust) | Yes (§ 4-10-510) | No |
| Formation timeline | 5-10 business days | 5-10 business days |
| 5-year total cost | $797 | $1,767 |
Wyoming wins on cost, statutory asset protection, and administrative simplicity, making it the default anonymous LLC for any owner who is not raising institutional venture capital. Both states keep members off the public record. Wyoming charges $100 to file and $60 as the minimum annual license tax, due in your formation-anniversary month, so the all-in Anonymousllc.co price is $397 and the five-year carrying cost lands near $797. Delaware's $300 flat annual franchise tax pushes the same five-year figure to roughly $1,767 - a $970 gap that buys no extra privacy. Wyoming's charging order statute (§ 17-29-503(a)) names the charging order as the exclusive creditor remedy against a member's interest, and that protection is written to reach single-member LLCs, the exact structure most solo founders use. Wyoming also authorizes a domestic asset protection trust (DAPT) under § 4-10-510, so you can layer a trust over the LLC without leaving the state. There is no state income tax on the entity or the member, Series LLCs are available for segregating multiple properties or brands under one filing, and banking partners recognize Wyoming filings without friction. Non-resident founders form in Wyoming at the same $397 price, receive an EIN by fax in 5-7 days when they lack an SSN, and move into a US business bank account 8-10 days after the EIN issues through partners such as Mercury, Relay, and Bluevine, at about a 90% approval rate. Beneficial ownership information still goes to FinCEN under federal BOI rules, but that report is confidential and never appears on the public state record, so anonymity on state filings stays intact. For real estate holdings, e-commerce, consulting, freelancing, and general operating businesses, Wyoming delivers the strongest protection-to-cost ratio of any anonymous state.
Delaware wins when you are raising institutional venture capital or plan a C-Corp conversion, because investors and their attorneys treat a Delaware entity and the Court of Chancery as the default. Anonymity on the state filing is identical to Wyoming. Delaware's Court of Chancery is a business-only court with judges instead of juries and more than two centuries of precedent on corporate and LLC disputes, which is why venture funds, their counsel, and acquirers standardize on Delaware. Forming a Delaware anonymous LLC through Anonymousllc.co costs $407 total - the flat $297 service fee plus the $110 state fee - and members stay off the public record exactly as they do in Wyoming. The recurring cost is where Delaware diverges: a $300 flat annual franchise tax is due every June 1 regardless of revenue, and Delaware does not offer a domestic asset protection trust, so the layered trust-over-LLC strategy available in Wyoming is off the table. For an operating company that will never raise a priced venture round, those two facts make Delaware more expensive and less protective than Wyoming with no offsetting benefit. Where Delaware earns its premium is the fundraising and exit path. If you expect a Series A, a convertible note from an institutional fund, or an acquisition by a Delaware parent, forming or converting into a Delaware entity avoids a re-domestication later. Many founders start as a Wyoming anonymous LLC for privacy and low cost, then convert to a Delaware C-Corp only when a term sheet requires it. Delaware LLCs pay no state income tax at the entity level, and Series LLCs are available here as well, so the split with Wyoming comes down to fundraising intent rather than privacy.
A Wyoming anonymous LLC costs $397 all-in and a Delaware anonymous LLC costs $407 total through Anonymousllc.co, so the formation prices sit within $10 of each other. The gap opens after year one. Wyoming's price is the flat $297 service fee plus the $100 state filing fee. Delaware's is the same $297 service fee plus a $110 state filing fee. Both include the state filing, year-one registered agent, EIN, a custom operating agreement, 4-5 bank applications, and BOI guidance, so the checkout total is the number you actually pay. The divergence is annual. Wyoming charges a $60 minimum license tax due in your formation-anniversary month. Delaware charges a $300 flat franchise tax due every June 1 regardless of revenue. Over five years Wyoming carries near $797 total and Delaware near $1,767 - a difference of roughly $970 for the same anonymity on the state record. For an operating business that will never raise a priced venture round, that $970 buys nothing extra.
Wyoming is better for a non-resident founder in almost every case, because it costs less to carry, offers a stronger single-member charging order, and banks with the same partners a Delaware LLC would use. Delaware only pulls ahead when a US venture raise is imminent. A non-resident forms in either state at the same all-in prices ($397 Wyoming, $407 Delaware) with members kept off the public record. Without an SSN, the EIN issues by fax in 5-7 days in both states. A US business bank account opens 8-10 days after the EIN through Mercury, Relay, or Bluevine at roughly a 90% approval rate, and the bank cares about the EIN and operating agreement, not which of the two states you chose. Because the banking and formation experience is equivalent, the deciding factors become cost and protection - both of which favor Wyoming. A non-resident building toward a US venture round is the exception: forming or converting into Delaware avoids re-domesticating the company later when investors require it.
Wyoming offers stronger asset protection for the typical single owner because its charging order statute is an exclusive remedy that reaches single-member LLCs, and it authorizes a domestic asset protection trust. Delaware's LLC protection is strong but Delaware offers no DAPT. Wyoming Statute § 17-29-503(a) names the charging order as the sole remedy a creditor has against a member's interest, and the language is written to cover single-member LLCs - the structure most solo founders use. That closes the gap that weakens single-member protection in some other states. Wyoming also authorizes a DAPT under § 4-10-510, so you can place the LLC's ownership interest inside a trust and add a spendthrift wall without leaving the state. Delaware provides solid charging order protection and a deep body of business case law, but it does not offer a domestic asset protection trust, so the layered trust-over-LLC strategy is unavailable there. For asset protection as the primary goal, Wyoming is the stronger and cheaper home.
Venture capitalists prefer Delaware because its Court of Chancery, its two centuries of corporate precedent, and its standardized C-Corp conversion path reduce legal risk and diligence cost for investors. Wyoming is not the fundraising standard. The Court of Chancery is a business-only court with judges instead of juries, which produces fast, predictable rulings on governance and shareholder disputes. Fund attorneys have modeled term sheets, stock structures, and protective provisions around Delaware law for decades, so a Delaware entity slots into their playbook with no friction. When a fund leads a priced round, it expects to convert the company into a Delaware C-Corp, and starting in Delaware - or converting cleanly into it - avoids a re-domestication. None of this improves privacy or day-to-day operations, which is why Delaware is the right call only when institutional fundraising is the actual plan. Many founders form a Wyoming anonymous LLC first and convert to a Delaware C-Corp when a term sheet requires it.
Yes. You can form a Wyoming anonymous LLC now and convert to a Delaware entity later when fundraising requires it, which is a common path for founders who want privacy and low cost first and the venture-standard structure only when a term sheet is on the table. Running as a Wyoming anonymous LLC captures the $60 annual cost, the exclusive-remedy charging order, and the DAPT option during the pre-funding years when those matter most and no investor is dictating the structure. If a priced round materializes, the company converts into a Delaware C-Corp as part of the financing, aligning with what the fund's attorneys expect. The reverse rarely makes sense: paying Delaware's $300 annual franchise tax and forgoing the DAPT for years, on the chance a venture raise happens, wastes money and protection. Start in Wyoming, convert to Delaware when the raise is real.
Wyoming requires one annual report with a $60 minimum license tax, while Delaware requires a $300 flat franchise tax return each June 1. Both require a registered agent and federal BOI reporting to FinCEN. A Wyoming LLC files its annual report in the formation-anniversary month, and the license tax is $60 for entities with assets in Wyoming below a set threshold, which covers most holding and operating LLCs. Miss the deadline and the state assesses a penalty before dissolving the entity for non-compliance, so the calendar reminder matters. The registered agent Anonymousllc.co provides in year one renews at $100 per year and keeps your address off the public record. Delaware's compliance is a single date to remember - the $300 franchise tax is due June 1 regardless of revenue, and there is no separate annual report for an LLC as there is for a corporation. Delaware also requires a registered agent, included in year one. On the federal side, both states file the same beneficial ownership information report with FinCEN, which stays confidential and never appears on the state record. Because Anonymousllc.co handles the BOI guidance and tracks the state deadlines, the practical difference for the owner is $60 a year in Wyoming versus $300 a year in Delaware, on top of the shared registered-agent renewal. Over a five-year horizon that recurring gap is the single largest cost driver separating the two states, and it is why Wyoming carries near $797 while Delaware carries near $1,767.
Wyoming is the better default for a real estate holding company because its Series LLC, DAPT option, exclusive-remedy charging order, and $60 annual cost fit passive property holding better than Delaware's $300 franchise tax and lack of a DAPT. Real estate investors hold property for protection and privacy rather than to raise venture capital, so Delaware's fundraising advantages do not apply. Wyoming lets an investor place multiple properties into separate series under one Series LLC filing, isolating the liability of each property from the others without forming a new entity each time. The charging order under § 17-29-503(a) is the exclusive creditor remedy and reaches single-member LLCs, which is the structure most solo investors use to hold a rental. Wyoming also authorizes a domestic asset protection trust under § 4-10-510, so an investor can layer a trust over the holding LLC and push ownership behind a spendthrift wall as the portfolio grows. Delaware supports Series LLCs as well, but its $300 annual franchise tax adds cost with no offsetting protection benefit for a passive holder, and the absence of a DAPT closes off the trust-over-LLC strategy entirely. For an investor holding property across several parcels, keeping the owner off the public record, and minimizing annual cost, Wyoming is the stronger and cheaper home. Delaware becomes relevant only if the real estate venture is structured to take institutional equity, at which point the fundraising standard reintroduces the case for a Delaware entity.
If you are raising venture capital, choose Delaware - it is what investors and their attorneys expect, and the Court of Chancery plus a clean C-Corp conversion path justify the cost. For everything else, Wyoming is the better value: identical anonymity on the state record, an exclusive-remedy charging order that reaches single-member LLCs, a DAPT option, and roughly $970 less in carrying cost over five years. A common path is to start in Wyoming for privacy and cost, then convert to a Delaware entity only when a term sheet forces the issue.
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