Bizee LLC Review (Formerly Incfile) | Are They Better Now?

It’s Saturday evening, and you’re sitting around a campfire telling your friends about this great idea you have. You’re excited, they’re excited, even your best friend’s dog is excited!

After seeing their reactions, you want to make things official. So, you spend the next few weeks brainstorming business names until you land on the perfect one. It speaks to you, it’s quirky, and there’s nothing else quite like it.

You know you want to form an LLC, but you aren’t sure how or where to start.

Does that last part sound familiar? If so, you’re not alone! Setting up your small business sounds complicated and scary, but it doesn’t have to be, thanks to the countless entity formation service providers out there.

But that in itself leads to a second problem. Which one do you choose? Is this business offering me free services… actually legit? In Bizee’s case, the answer is yes.

Bizee is a business entity formation service provider with an incredible free plan (plus state fees) that helps entrepreneurs like you get started quickly and painlessly.

In this Bizee LLC formation review, I will cover the things I don’t like, several external user reviews, their reputation as a company, and walk through the LLC formation process using Bizee. Soon, you’ll know if Bizee is the right formation service for your next great idea!

About Bizee

After about 20 years in business, Incfile rebranded to Bizee. Bizee is an online legal services provider specializing in business formation. The company offers services to form an LLC, corporation, or nonprofit entity, all online. They also provide a range of tools and features, both paid and unpaid, that can be useful throughout the life of a small business.

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Pros & Cons of Bizee

My Overall Rating: 4.33/5

Pros

• With the Silver plan, you only pay the state fee to form an LLC
• Lifetime phone and email customer support
• Free registered agent service for one full year
• You can track your order and filing status online
• Free 1-hour tax consultation with a business tax expert
• Add-ons are not as expensive as the other “free” LLC services

Cons

• No weekend customer support
• Numerous package upgrades and add-ons through the LLC registration process
• Bizee doesn’t have as many services as some competitors like ZenBusiness (accounting, website, banking) or LegalZoom (trademarks, extensive contracts)

Bizee Pricing

Bizee uses a tiered pricing structure that allows business owners to decide which add-ons they need without paying full price for them. On the Bizee pricing page, they show you how much you save with each tier.

*Your state fees may differ from the screenshot below.

Bizee Silver Package: $0 + State Fees

Bizee’s Silver package is free (plus the state filing fee) and includes the filing of the LLC paperwork. You can also choose to have Bizee act as your registered agent service for free for one year.

While this is the most basic package and will get your LLC set up, this is all most people need. The Gold package offers a few additional filings that make sense in paying for it.

Bizee Gold Package: $199 + State Fees

Bizee’s Gold Package is $199 + state filing fees and includes everything you need to register with your state and other things that may be nice to have. You get everything in the Silver Package plus:

• EIN registration
• IRS Form 2553 (this is a free form from the IRS where you elect S corp tax status for the LLC, and not everyone is going to do that) How to fill out form 2553
• Operating agreement template
• Banking resolution
• Lifetime company alerts (to let you know when important filings like the annual report are due)

For $199 over the Silver Plan, you get some extra things that are generally available at no cost. For instance, the EIN registration is free to do and only takes about 5 minutes. If you are comparing Bizee against ZenBusiness, Bizee offers lifetime company alerts, which let you know when state forms are due. The annual report filing requirement for the LLC is super easy, so while Bizee doesn’t file the annual report for you, it’s kind of like the Worry Free Compliance from ZenBusiness, without the annual fee. If you really want someone else to file the report, Bizee does it for $99 a year.

Bizee Platinum Package: $299 + State Fees

Bizee’s Platinum Package is $299 + state filing fees and includes everything in the Gold Package plus a few additional add-ons that may be nice to have for your business. With this package, you also get:

• Next day filing
• Business contract templates
• A domain name and email service ($2.99 per month after the first year)

The Platinum Package is a disappointing value, in my opinion, because rush filing isn’t much of a differentiator, and you can buy it separately for an extra $50 with the Silver Plan.

The business contract templates aren’t much value unless you can actually use those particular contracts.

And last, you are likely going to need a website, and most website hosts include email with their plans for free, if not a low monthly cost. In my opinion, you are better off relying on the domain and email with companies that specialize in those services and not an entity formation service (though they likely outsource those services).

Additional Bizee Services

Bizee also offers additional services beyond entity formation. They offer a full suite of startup services to help, and a few of the more common ones include:

1. Amendments ($99 + state fees) — This helps you change your business name, remove or add members, update your address, or change stated business activities.
2. Company Name Change ($99 + state fees) — This form is required if you need to change the name of your LLC or corporation.
3. Virtual Address ($29/month +) – If you want a business address, Bizee offers a virtual address in 37 states).
4. Certificate of Good Standing ($49 + state fees) — This is an official document from the secretary of state confirming your entity is in good standing. You may need this to get a loan, file business taxes, or prove your company exists. Learn more about the Certificate of Good Standing.
5. DBA or Fictitious business name (unlisted) — This process is required if you wish to do business using a name other than your official business name. Some states don’t allow this, but Bizee can take care of everything for you. Learn more about filing a fictitious business name (sometimes called a DBA)
6. Foreign qualification ($149 + state fees) — If you’re interested in doing business out of state or expanding beyond your local area, you have to follow the foreign qualification process. Note: this does not include expanding beyond the United States.
7. Change of service agent ($49 + state fees) — You have to inform your state if you change your registered agent. Bizee will do all the paperwork and communication for you.
8. Business license research package ($99) — Bizee will send you a comprehensive list of all the state and federal business licenses that apply to your business. They also send you all the forms to submit, but they do not file them for you. Learn more about business licenses in each state. 
9. Annual reporting ($99 + state fees) — LLCs and corporations have to file an annual report (sometimes biannual or decennial, depending on the state) outlining their company’s activities. This usually means providing updated addresses for directors and managers as well as your registered agent.  Paying for this service takes one more thing off your plate, but if you file with Bizee, they will provide compliance reminders and send an email when this report is due. 
10. S-Corporation tax elections ($50) — This is form 2553 for the IRS. It can help reduce the amount of taxes you owe as a Limited Liability Company by reducing your taxable income. Bizee can help you file this form, though it is free from the IRS.
11. Trademark registration ($199 + state fees) — You can file a trademark to protect business assets like your name, logo, and tagline. This package includes existing trademark research, legal counsel, and a registered trademark.  Learn more about the differences between trademarks, copyrights, and patents.

Setting up an LLC with Bizee

To get started, Bizee asks what type of entity you want to form and the state of formation. In this example, I’m going with the Limited Liability Company and Wyoming.

Next, you will choose which package to go with, as were explained earlier. In this example, I’m using the Silver.

 

you can either click on the red “incorporate now” button or select your business type and filing state from the dropdowns directly below the navigation menu. From there, you can decide which package you’d like to move forward with. 

Their silver plan is free (+ state filing fees for the articles of organization) and is the one I chose. But they also offer a gold package for $199 and a platinum package for $299, plus state fees. Additionally, this page tells you how much you save by choosing a premium plan instead of choosing add-ons a la carte. 

This is nice because with alternative “always free” business formation packages, you don’t have the option to bundle services and extras together to save money.

 

• Name
• Email address
• Phone number
• And mailing address

Next, you choose the filing time. If you are fine with normal processing, there is no extra to pay, while expedited processing is available for an additional charge.

Next, you need to provide information about the entity you’re forming. This includes:

• Your company name
• Entity designator (varies by state, but generally LLCs can choose LLC, L.L.C, and Limited Liability Company, and corporations can use Corporation, Corp, and Company
• The number of members (owners)
• Purpose of the business
• Industry (Choose from the one that most closely matches the primary activity of the business)
• And the company address

On this screen, Bizee also offers an upsell where you can use a commercial address ($29 per month) or use your home address. This is useful if you don’t want your home information listed on the formation paperwork.

After you hit next, they offer you a premium service package for an additional $99. This upgrade includes:

• EIN/Tax ID Number – Learn how to apply for an EIN at no cost with the Internal Revenue Service
• Operating Agreement – These aren’t required in most states, but even in states where the operating agreement isn’t required, they can be important. One reason is that if the LLC is sued, the LLC may be subject to default state rules, which may not be in the best interests of the members. However, perhaps the most important reason is that the roles and responsibilities would be in writing, and that can hopefully keep the members from fighting down the road.
• Banking Resolution – The banking resolution is an agreement by the members to open a bank account and give certain members access to the account. Most banks are going to give one for free in order to open a business bank account.
• Business Contract Templates – A library of over 25 legal documents, which includes an independent contractor agreement, consulting agreement, bill of sale, etc. You can click on the link to see if there are any that are relevant to your business.
  
  

Next, you’ll add contact information for each member (or a company) of your LLC. You have the option of choosing the contact information entered earlier to quickly fill out these fields, in addition to the percentage ownership.

From there, you get to decide if you’d like Bizee to be your registered agent service for a year (first year free). After the first year, the registered agent is $119 per year, which isn’t a bad price, considering ZenBusiness charges $199.

It is important to note that while the free registered agent in the first year is a good deal if you don’t plan to keep it after the first year, you may be better off not using the service because you will have to file a form and pay a fee to the state to get the agent officially changed.

The next upsell is for Bizee to obtain an EIN number. Not every business needs an EIN number. As a single-member LLC, you can open a bank account under your Social Security Number (though some banks may require an EIN to open a bank account). If you plan to hire employees, the EIN is required.

You can file an EIN directly with the IRS in about 5 minutes for free, but Bizee can do it for you for $70.

Bizee also runs a promotion where you can set up a bank account with Bank of America and earn up to a $500 bonus. While you should get a separate bank account for your business, and getting a sign-on bonus is always nice, I recommend signing up only if there is a branch convenient to you.

Next, you are asked if you prefer electronic delivery of the formation documents or by mail through FedEx for an additional $25.

The next upsell is for a free business tax consultation. Since the LLC can choose whether to be taxed as a sole proprietorship, general partnership, S Corporation, or C Corporation, if you have questions and don’t have a CPA figured out yet, it may be a good idea to set this up and speak with a tax professional. I still recommend working with a local CPA, but if you haven’t gotten that far yet, this call should be very helpful in your planning.

The last service that is offered is the business license check. This is a $99 package that will search for federal, state, county, and local licenses based on what your business does. This is probably the most useful add-on service, and while you can do this research on your own if you’re crunched for time, aren’t sure what you need, or just want a second set of eyes to make sure everything is legal, this might be a helpful option.

Then, you have an opportunity to review everything before submitting and entering your payment information. Double-check to make sure everything you entered is accurate. Enter your payment information, you’re DONE!

Virtual high-five!

Bizee’s Reputation

With over 1,000,000 customers and 20 years of service, their solid reputation in the industry is hard to ignore. They have thousands of five-star reviews across the internet, mentioning excellent customer service and overall product and pricing satisfaction.

 

BBB Bizee Reviews

Still branded under Incfile, there are over 1,900 customer reviews on file with the Better Business Bureau, with an average of 4.86/5.

Trustpilot Bizee Reviews

On Trustpilot, Bizee has over 17,000 reviews with an overall rating of 4.7/5 stars and 93% are over 4 stars.

Bizee Customer Feedback Conclusion

Bizee is a safe and trusted LLC service with thousands of positive online reviews. They’re especially noted for having great customer service and customer satisfaction with their products and pricing.

When they do make a mistake, which all businesses do, they seem quick to fix mistakes and consistently work to make the process as easy as possible.

What I Like About Bizee

As I went through Bizee’s LLC formation process, I found numerous things I liked about their services. So, I want to walk through them with you to explain why they stood out to me and the benefits they offer.

1. Price

Bizee’s Silver plan will only cost you the state filing fee and is enough for most people starting their business. I think the Gold package offers a lot of value as they file the EIN and several documents and include the lifetime company alerts, which helps to make sure the LLC stays in compliance. The additional services in the Gold package can all be done at no cost, and the company alerts can simply be a calendar reminder (on top of the state sending you a notice). The Platinum plan is really weak; it only offers business contract templates, free next-day filing, and a domain name and email. These don’t seem worth the extra $100. If there is an individual service that you like from a higher-tier plan, you can add them separately within the Silver plan.

While there are several upsells, they aren’t super time-consuming like they are on Inc Authority or ZenBusiness. Many of the upsells are easy enough to do on your own for free if desired, but the business license research package is a pretty good price at $99 and a low price for the peace of mind of knowing that your business licensing is in place.

Bizee’s registered agent is free for the first year, but after that, it’s $119, which is much cheaper than ZenBusiness at $199, or LegalZoom‘s $249 registered agent.

2. Lifetime Customer Support

Whether you placed your order yesterday or eight years ago, their support team is there to help you through the process from start to finish. They offer chat, email, and phone support during standard business hours Monday through Friday.

So, if you have general questions, in-depth questions, or need a new copy of something you filed several months ago, their team has you covered. They’re always a few clicks or a phone call away! As a new business owner, setting up an LLC can be scary and confusing. It’s totally normal to feel uncertain and question whether you’re doing things the right way. Their team understands this and at least from the test questions I threw at them, seem like they are capable of answering correctly.

3. Free Company Name Availability Analysis

There’s (almost) nothing worse than spending weeks brainstorming the perfect business name, registering your LLC, paying the state fees, and realizing afterward your name is already in use.

Bizee ensures this doesn’t happen by checking your name against other registered businesses in your state. During the signup process, they let you know they’ll contact you and work with you to resolve any conflicts or issues with your business name.

If you want to search yourself and see if your business name is available, we show you how to search on the state’s website at no cost. 

They also give you the courtesy of double-checking for spelling so you don’t accidentally make a typo and end up paying for it later. Or notice it too late.

4. Fairly Priced Add-Ons

Unlike all of the other “free” entity formation services, Bizee has the most reasonably priced add-ons. While they all can give you a free, plus state fee, LLC, if you want any other services from EIN registration, registered agent, or anything else, at least they are fair in their pricing.

What I Don’t Like About Bizee

I have to say, most of my experience with Bizee was great. But, I did find a few things I didn’t like about their process. As with every great business, they’re far from perfect, and Bizee is no different.

So, I want to walk through them and explain why the things I don’t like… aren’t so great.

1. They Have Limited Customer Support Hours

If you’re anything like me, the idea of working whenever you want is one of the most attractive benefits of starting your own business. You’re not limited to working standard business hours, but Bizee’s support IS limited to Monday – Friday (9 am – 6 pm CST).

While it’s not a huge problem, you can imagine the frustration of experiencing problems or having questions at 8 pm on Friday night. You have to wait until Monday for their team to start investigating your issue and get back to you.

ZenBusiness offers Sunday customer service on top of weekdays if that’s important to you.

As I mentioned, it’s not a deal-breaker by any means, especially since they have good customer support, but it is something to note if you work odd hours outside of a normal business day.

2. Numerous Upgrades and Add-Ons During Registration

Because Bizee’s Silver package is free, they make money by offering upsells and add-ons throughout the registration process. But even with the paid pricing plans (Gold and Platinum), they offer additional paid upgrades.

Overall, this isn’t a bad thing, but some of the offers aren’t necessary or won’t work for every type of business. New small business owners may not know this and could end up spending more money than they need to for services and extras that won’t do them any good.

With that being said, every business is unique, and your decisions should reflect that. These add-ons may make sense in your situation, so do your research and understand what they are before making any choices.

Final Words on Bizee’s LLC Formation Service

Whether you want to form an LLC, non-profit, or S-Corporation, Bizee has you covered with an easy-to-use platform that helps answer your questions as you go. Their three-tier pricing model lets you bundle services to get what you need at a discounted price. You can also choose from their list of add-ons to pay for what you need.  Most people will do just fine with the free filing!

Bizee is a great resource and friend to have whether you’re a new business owner or incorporating your 537th business. They offer fair, accurate, and transparent prices with a top-notch support team ready to help.

If you are ready to get started, here is the link to form your LLC with Bizee.

Common Questions About Bizee