An Illinois LLC costs $447 all-in for year one through Anonymousllc.co: a $297 service fee plus the $150 Illinois state filing fee. That covers the filing, registered agent for year one, operating agreement, EIN, and four to five US bank applications. From year two the recurring cost is the $75 annual report plus $100/year for the registered agent. Founders who prioritize privacy form a $397 all-in Wyoming anonymous LLC and foreign-qualify into Illinois. This page breaks down every Illinois LLC cost, one-time and ongoing.
The Illinois Secretary of State charges $150 to file the Articles of Organization. This one-time fee is paid at formation and is the only mandatory state charge at filing time. The $150 covers the Articles filing for a standard Illinois LLC, including a series LLC parent entity. Illinois accepts the filing within 1-3 business days. There is no separate name reservation fee for standard formation, because the name locks the moment the Articles are accepted. Founders who want to hold a name before filing pay a separate reservation fee to the Secretary of State.
Anonymousllc.co forms an Illinois LLC for $297 service fee + $150 state fee = $447 total all-in for year one. That covers the state filing, registered agent for year one, the operating agreement, the EIN, and four to five US bank applications. There are no hidden upsells behind that number. Add-on services are priced separately when a client needs them: EIN standalone $99, ITIN $299, and BOI $150 per report where a foreign reporting company applies. Founders whose top priority is privacy form a $397 all-in Wyoming anonymous LLC and foreign-qualify into Illinois instead.
From year two, an Illinois LLC costs $75 for the annual report plus $100/year for a commercial registered agent, so ongoing maintenance runs about $175/year. Income tax obligations depend on Illinois-sourced income and the entity-level tax election. The $75 annual report is filed with the Secretary of State each year to keep the LLC in good standing. The $100/year registered agent keeps the owner's address off the public record and handles state mail. Anonymousllc.co files the annual report as part of the registered agent subscription, so the recurring cost stays predictable and the deadline never passes unfiled.
Filing yourself costs the $150 state fee alone, but you handle the name check, Articles, operating agreement, EIN, and bank applications on your own. Anonymousllc.co charges $297 service fee plus the state fee and completes every step in 5-10 business days. The DIY route saves the $297 service fee but costs time and carries the risk of a rejected filing, a missing operating agreement clause, or an EIN error that stalls banking. For non-residents, the EIN-by-fax process and multi-bank applications are the hardest steps to complete alone, which is where the service fee earns its cost.
No. New Mexico is the cheapest at $347 all-in with no annual report and no annual fee, and Wyoming is $397 all-in with strong anonymity. Illinois costs $447 all-in for year one plus $175/year in ongoing maintenance. The gap widens over time because New Mexico has no recurring state report and Wyoming charges only a $60 annual report. Illinois adds a $75 annual report every year. Many founders form a Wyoming anonymous LLC and foreign-qualify into Illinois when local operations require a registered presence, which keeps ownership private while keeping the Illinois footprint compliant.
The $447 covers the $297 service fee plus the $150 Illinois state filing fee. It includes registered agent for year one, an Illinois-specific operating agreement, the EIN, and four to five US bank applications to Mercury, Relay, and Bluevine. Nothing on that list is an upsell added at checkout. The registered agent renews at $100/year from year two, and the $75 annual report is due each year to hold good standing. A funded US business account lands by day 10-12 of the overall timeline through the multi-bank application strategy that reaches roughly 90% approval.
Illinois does not levy a Delaware-style franchise tax on LLCs. The recurring state obligation is the $75 annual report, plus the flat 4.95% income tax and the 1.5% replacement tax on LLCs taxed as partnerships. The replacement tax funds local governments that lost personal property tax revenue, and it applies to pass-through profit of an LLC taxed as a partnership. A single-member LLC taxed as a disregarded entity reports income on the owner's personal return. There is no separate annual franchise fee on top of the annual report for a standard Illinois LLC.
An Illinois LLC is fully operational in 5-10 business days end-to-end. The Secretary of State accepts the filing within 1-3 business days, the EIN follows 5-7 days after filing for non-residents, and bank approval averages 8-10 days after the EIN. The steps run in parallel wherever the sequence allows. Anonymousllc.co files the Articles on day 0 and starts the EIN the moment the state stamp arrives. Bank applications go to four or five partner banks at once, so a funded account lands by day 10-12 without waiting on a single institution's decision.
The lowest cash outlay is paying the $150 state fee directly and handling every other step yourself. Most owners find the DIY route costs more in time and missed steps than the $297 service fee would have cost in money. For a founder who only needs an Illinois entity, the $447 all-in package removes the risk of a rejected filing or a stalled EIN. For a founder who needs privacy, the cheapest privacy-grade path is a $347 all-in New Mexico anonymous LLC or a $397 all-in Wyoming anonymous LLC foreign-qualified into Illinois.
Pay $447 for an Illinois LLC when the business needs a physical Illinois presence, Illinois employees, or Illinois real estate. Choose a $397 all-in Wyoming or $347 all-in New Mexico anonymous LLC when ownership privacy is the priority. The Illinois LLC lists members or managers on the public record, so it does not deliver anonymity at any price. The anonymous LLC keeps owners off the record and can foreign-qualify into Illinois when local operations begin. Many founders run both: a Wyoming holding LLC that owns the Illinois operating LLC, which keeps the ultimate owner private while the Illinois entity handles local business at the $447 formation cost.
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