Texas LLC Cost in 2026

Last updated: 2026-10-07

Texas charges a $300 filing fee to form an LLC — but the filing fee is only part of the story. This guide breaks down every verified Texas LLC cost: formation fees, the annual franchise tax and Public Information Report, registered agent service, and the optional extras people forget to budget for. Figures below are verified on official Texas sources. llcformation.io/ is an independent private service — not a government agency.

The Texas LLC filing fee: $300

To form an LLC in Texas you file a Certificate of Formation (Form 205) with the Texas Secretary of State. The state filing fee is $300, confirmed on the official form instructions at sos.state.tx.us. That is the single mandatory government fee for forming the LLC itself.

For context: $300 puts Texas at the higher end of formation fees nationally — far above states like Wyoming ($100) or Delaware ($110) — but Texas offsets this with no annual report fee and no personal or corporate income tax. Read the full Texas LLC guide for the step-by-step formation process.

Full Texas LLC cost breakdown

Here is every verified cost line, first year and ongoing:

At formation (mandatory):

• State filing fee (Certificate of Formation, Form 205) — $300
• Registered agent designation — included in the Certificate of Formation; no separate Texas filing fee
• EIN (Employer Identification Number) — $0 if you apply directly with the IRS

Ongoing (annual):

• Public Information Report (PIR) — $0 filing fee; mandatory every year by May 15, filed with the Comptroller of Public Accounts (not the Secretary of State)
• Texas franchise (margin) tax — $0 for the 2026 report year if annualized total revenue is $2.65 million or less, per comptroller.texas.gov. Above that threshold, the tax is 0.75% of taxable margin for most businesses, 0.375% for qualifying retail/wholesale, or 0.331% under the EZ computation for entities with $20M or less in revenue
• Registered agent service (optional, if you hire one) — pricing to be confirmed; contact us on WhatsApp for a quote

Common optional extras:

• Operating agreement — not filed with the state; drafted privately (a one-time cost if you hire help)
• DBA / assumed name certificate — filed at the county level when you operate under a name other than your LLC's legal name
• Sales tax permit — $0 state application cost if you sell taxable goods or services in Texas
• Foreign qualification — only if your Texas LLC does business in another state (each state charges its own fee)

The PIR is mandatory even when no franchise tax is owed — since 2024 there is no separate No-Tax-Due Report; only the Public Information Report is required (comptroller.texas.gov).

What makes your Texas LLC total higher or lower

Two founders can pay meaningfully different totals for a Texas LLC. What moves the number:

Lower:

• Do it once, do it right. Rejections and amendments cost time and new filing fees — check your LLC name availability before filing.
• Get your own EIN. The IRS issues EINs free; paying someone hundreds of dollars just for an EIN is unnecessary.
• Low revenue means zero franchise tax. Most small LLCs owe $0 franchise tax under the $2.65M no-tax-due threshold, so the annual state cost is effectively just your registered agent service.

Higher:

• Revenue above the threshold. Once annualized total revenue passes $2.65M, the franchise tax applies (0.75% / 0.375% / 0.331% EZ depending on the business).
• Operating in other states. A Texas LLC doing business elsewhere usually needs foreign qualification in each of those states — each with its own filing and annual fees.
• Hiring employees or selling taxable goods. Payroll and sales tax registrations add accounts (not necessarily fees) to manage.
• DIY errors. A rejected or incorrect filing means refiling and repaying fees.

"Cheap state" myths — an honest look at Texas

Search "cheapest state to form an LLC" and Texas often gets lumped in simply because it has no income tax. Here is the honest version:

• Myth: Texas is cheap because it has no income tax. Reality: the $300 filing fee is one of the highest in the country. The income-tax saving only matters once your LLC actually earns income — and the franchise tax applies to revenue above the threshold regardless.
• Myth: the $300 is all you ever pay. Reality: the mandatory annual Public Information Report (free to file) plus franchise tax accounting every year, plus a registered agent every year.
• Myth: form in a "cheap" state to save money. Reality: if you live and operate in Texas, forming in another state usually means paying that state's fees plus Texas foreign qualification fees — two states' costs instead of one.

For most Texas-based founders, forming in Texas is the straightforward choice, and the long-term math is favorable precisely because there is no income tax and no annual report fee — not because the filing fee is low.

Our service fee vs. government fees

When you work with llcformation.io/, your total has two clearly separated parts:

1. State government fees — paid to the Texas Secretary of State and the Comptroller (for example, the $300 filing fee). These are set by the state, and we never mark them up.
2. Our service fee — our charge for preparing your documents, handling the filing, acting as your point of contact, and guiding you through each step. Pricing to be confirmed — contact us on WhatsApp for a quote.

See our pricing page for the full breakdown. Optional services such as EIN assistance, an operating agreement draft, or registered agent service are quoted separately and always labeled clearly — never mixed into the government fee.

Ready to form your Texas LLC? Reach us on WhatsApp at +92 314 9150035 or visit our contact page.

Frequently asked questions