Deal alert! Northwest will form your LLC for $39 (60% discount). See details.
To start an LLC in Wyoming, file Articles of Organization with the Wyoming Secretary of State. This costs $100 and takes 1 day for approval.
There are 5 steps to follow:
- Choose an LLC Name
- Select a Registered Agent
- File Articles of Organization
- Create an Operating Agreement
- Get an EIN
If you want to form your LLC yourself, follow our free guide below.
If you want someone to take care of it for you, we recommend hiring Northwest Registered Agent
Need to save time? Hire a company to form your LLC:
Northwest ($39 + state fee) or LegalZoom ($149 + state fee)
(We recommend Northwest. We've reviewed all the top companies in the industry. And Northwest is our #1 pick for prices, customer support, and address privacy. Check out Northwest vs LegalZoom to learn more.)
It costs $100 to start an LLC.
And then it costs $60 per year.
What are these fees for?
- The $100 is to file the LLC Articles of Organization – the document that creates an LLC.
- The $60 per year is for your Annual Report – a mandatory filing that keeps your LLC in good standing.
To learn more about LLC Costs, see LLC Costs in Wyoming.
If you file by mail, your LLC will be approved in 10-15 business days (plus mail time).
But if you file online, your LLC will be approved immediately.
Please see How long does it take to get an LLC in Wyoming to check for any delays.
Here are the steps to forming an LLC in Wyoming
1. Search your LLC Name
Search your LLC Name to make sure it’s available in the state.
You need to do this because two businesses in the state can’t have the same name.
First, search your business entity name and compare it to existing businesses in Wyoming. You can make sure the LLC Name you want is unique from existing businesses using the Business Center Search from the Wyoming Secretary of State.
Second, familiarize yourself with the state’s naming rules (so your LLC gets approved).
We’ll explain both in more detail here: Wyoming LLC Name.
Decentralized Autonomous Organization: If you are forming a Wyoming DAO LLC, there are different naming rules and filing requirements.
2. Choose a Registered Agent
The next step is to choose a Registered Agent.
A Wyoming Registered Agent is a person or company who accepts legal mail and state notices on behalf of your Wyoming Limited Liability Company.
Who can be an LLC Registered Agent?
You have 3 options for who can be the Registered Agent:
- You
- A friend or family member
- A Registered Agent Service
Wyoming law requires that all LLC Registered Agents have a physical street address in Wyoming. PO Boxes aren’t allowed.
And the Registered Agent’s name and address will be listed on public records.
If you don’t have a physical address in Wyoming, or you want more privacy, you can hire a Registered Agent Service for your LLC.
We recommend Northwest Registered Agent
Our favorite feature about Northwest is they’ll let you use their office address throughout your LLC filing. This way, you can keep your address off public records.
They’ll also scan any mail sent to your LLC and upload it to your online account.
Northwest has excellent customer service, and they’re who we trust to be our own Registered Agent.
Special offer: Hire Northwest to form your LLC ($39 + state fee), and you'll get a free year of Registered Agent service.
(Why is Northwest the best? Read our Northwest Registered Agent review)
3. File Articles of Organization
To start an LLC, you need to file the Wyoming Articles of Organization. This is the document that, once filed with the Wyoming Secretary of State, creates your LLC.
The Wyoming Articles of Organization costs $100 if you file online.
This is a one-time fee to create your Limited Liability Company.
If you want to file this yourself, see our step-by-step guide: Wyoming Articles of Organization.
Or, you can hire a company to do it for you.
Need to save time? Hire a company to form your LLC:
Northwest ($39 + state fee) or LegalZoom ($149 + state fee)
(Learn why Northwest is #1 in Northwest vs LegalZoom)
4. Create an Operating Agreement
An Operating Agreement serves as a “companion” document to the Articles of Organization.
The Articles of Organization creates your LLC, and the LLC’s Operating Agreement shows who owns the LLC.
Additionally, some banks require an Operating Agreement when you open an LLC bank account.
And having an Operating Agreement will be very helpful if you ever end up in court. Reason being, it helps prove that your LLC is being run properly.
That’s why we recommend that all LLCs have an Operating Agreement – including a Single-Member Wyoming LLC.
Furthermore, an Operating Agreement is an “internal document“. Meaning, you don’t need to file it with any internal document (like the Wyoming Secretary of State or the Internal Revenue Service). Just keep a copy with your business records.
You can download a free template below.
Then, learn how to fill it out by watching our step-by-step Wyoming Operating Agreement video.
5. Get an EIN for your LLC
The next step is to get a Wyoming EIN Number from the IRS for your LLC.
Note: An EIN Number is also called a Federal Tax ID Number or Federal Employer Identification Number.
An EIN Number is used to:
- identify your LLC for tax purposes
- open a business bank account
- apply for business licenses and permits
Getting an EIN Number from the IRS is completely free.
If you apply online, it takes 15 minutes.
If you apply by mail or fax, it can take 1-3 months.
How can I get an EIN?
US Citizens/US Residents: If you have an SSN or ITIN, you can apply for an EIN online. Follow these instructions: Apply for an EIN online.
Non-US Residents: You can’t get an EIN online, but you can still get one by fax or by mail. Follow these instructions: How to get an EIN without an SSN or ITIN.
What do I do after my LLC is approved?
After your LLC is approved, there are some additional steps.
You’ll want to open a business bank account for your LLC.
This makes accounting and record-keeping much easier for your business finances.
Having a separate business bank account also maintains your personal liability protection. This is because it keeps your business entity finances separate from your personal finances.
Good news, Wyoming doesn’t have a state general business license.
However, depending on where your LLC is located, you may need a local business license or permit.
For example, if you want to start a daycare, you may need a business license from the city or county.
You can learn more on our Wyoming Business License page.
All Wyoming LLCs must file an Annual Report every year.
The Annual Report keeps your LLC in good standing with the state.
How much does a Wyoming Annual Report cost?
The LLC Annual Report fee is $60 per year.
When is the Annual Report due?
Your Annual Report is due before the first day of your LLC’s formation month, every year.
For example, if your LLC was formed on June 10, your Annual Report is due every year before June 1.
When is my first Annual Report due?
Your first Annual Report is due the year after your LLC was approved.
For example, if your LLC was approved on June 16, 2025, your first Annual Report is due by June 1, 2026.
How do I file my LLC Annual Report?
You can file your LLC’s Annual Report online or by mail. We recommend the online filing because it’s easier to complete.
Follow our step-by-step guide here: Wyoming LLC Annual Report.
Wyoming LLCs don’t pay federal income tax. Instead, the LLC Members pay the taxes for the LLC.
Said another way, the owners pay taxes for the Limited Liability Company as a part of their personal income tax return.
How will my LLC be taxed?
By default, an LLC is taxed by the IRS based on the number of owners your LLC has:
- A Single-Member LLC is taxed like a Sole Proprietorship.
- A Multi-Member LLC is taxed like a Partnership.
Alternatively, you can ask the IRS to tax your LLC like a C-Corporation or S-Corporation.
Besides federal taxes, there is also local and state income tax – and sales tax. Learn more in Wyoming LLC Taxes.
Wyoming Secretary of State Contact Info
You can contact the Wyoming Secretary of State at 307-777-7311.
Their hours are Monday through Friday, 8am – 5pm, Mountain time.
How to Start an LLC in Wyoming FAQs
Yes, you can file your LLC online in Wyoming. The Articles of Organization filing fee is $100.
When you start your LLC online, it will be approved immediately.
The first benefit of an LLC is protecting your personal assets. Meaning, if your business is sued, your personal assets – like your home, cars, and bank accounts – are protected.
This protection applies to all LLC owners (called LLC Members). It doesn’t matter if you have a Single-Member LLC or Multi-Member LLC. All of the LLC owners are protected from the business debts and liabilities.
This type of protection wouldn’t apply if you operate as a Sole Proprietorship or Partnership. With these types of informal business structures, the owners aren’t protected in the event of a lawsuit. For that reason, Limited Liability Companies (LLCs) are a much more popular business structure.
Another benefit is LLC pass-through taxation. This means the LLC itself doesn’t pay federal income taxes. Instead, the profits “pass through” to the LLC Members. And the Members pay the taxes on their personal tax return.
And Wyoming state income taxes are very similar, since the state honors the federal tax treatment of your LLC.
The good news is that Washington doesn’t have state-level income tax.
This means you don’t have to file an individual state-level income tax return for your Washington LLC income.
To learn more, please see How are LLCs taxed.
Whether Wyoming is a good state to start an LLC depends on where you live – and where you’re doing business.
Meaning, if you live in or do business in Wyoming, then you should start your LLC there. While many websites talk about tax rates and advantages of certain states, none of that applies if it’s not the state where you live and do business.
For example, if you form an LLC in Delaware, but live in and conduct business in Wyoming, you’ll also need to register your Delaware LLC in Wyoming (and pay extra fees). And you’ll end up paying Wyoming taxes anyway. This ends up leading to more costs and more headaches with no advantages.
In summary, if you live in and conduct business in Wyoming, then yes, Wyoming is a good state to start a business. If you don’t live in and do business in Wyoming, then no, Wyoming isn’t a good state to start a business.
Real estate exception: If you’re purchasing real estate outside of Wyoming, you should form your LLC in the state where the property is located.
For more information, please see Why You Shouldn’t Form an LLC in Wyoming and Best State to Form an LLC.
The main differences between Domestic LLCs, Foreign LLCs, and Professional LLCs are where they are formed and their business purpose.
A Domestic Limited Liability Company is an LLC that is formed in its “home state”, meaning, where the business owner lives and does business.
For example, if you live in and do business in Georgia, you would form your Domestic LLC in Georgia.
A Foreign Limited Liability Company is an LLC that is formed in a state that isn’t its home state. In this case, the term “foreign” simply means that the LLC is foreign to its “home state”.
For example, if you live in and do business in Georgia, you would form your Domestic LLC in Georgia. If you later expand into Florida, you would register your existing Georgia LLC as a Foreign LLC in Florida.
Said another way, LLCs are created at the state-level.
So if you want your LLC to do business in two separate states, you have to form or register an LLC in both states.
This works by forming a Domestic LLC in your home state, and a Foreign LLC in the other state.
What is a PLLC?
A Professional Limited Liability Company (PLLC) is a type of LLC formed for the purpose of providing “professional services”.
In this case, “professional” refers to business types that require special permissions (like a license, registration, or certification from the state) in order to do business legally.
For example, architects, attorneys, and social work counselors, doctors, and veterinarians often form their business practices as PLLCs.
You can read more about PLLCs, their availability, and their stricter requirements in: What’s a Professional LLC?
And for more information on Foreign and Domestic LLCs, please see:
References
Wyoming LLC Act
Wyoming Secretary of State: Business FAQs
Wyoming Secretary of State: Starting a Business
Wyoming Secretary of State: Filing Fee Schedule
Wyoming Department of Revenue: New Vendor Packets
Wyoming Economic Development Agency: Startup Resources
Wyoming Secretary of State: Registered Agents & Offices FAQs
Wyoming Secretary of State: Annual Report and License Tax Rules
Matt holds a Bachelor's Degree in business from Drexel University with a concentration in business law. He performs extensive research and analysis to convert state laws into simple instructions anyone can follow to form their LLC - all for free! Read more about Matt Horwitz and LLC University.
Quick question: I live in very rural Kansas. As far as I know, there are no physical street addresses available via the Postal system. (It is possible to have UPS/FedX items sent to a street address – but all mail, banking or credit card info, etc. must have a POB address.) I am starting a business where those I work with require a physical address. So how do I do this?
– Does the registered agent handle this?
– Can I trust them to be reliable, confidential, trustworthy?
– How often do they forward mail received?
– What is the cost for this service?
– Are there any other options for me concerning this matter?
THANKS MUCH for your helpful, practical website.
Hi JD, you’re very welcome! I think you have 2 distinct needs:
For the later, I wouldn’t recommend using a Registered Agent address (they’re really not built to be high-volume mail forwarders). Instead, I’d search for “mailbox rental” in nearby towns or cities (it could be a bit of a drive). And in terms of finding a reliable mailbox rental company, and finding out how much they charge (most are $15 to $30 per month), check out the Mailbox Rental Questionnaire I made. Under the hood, these are technically CMRAs (Commercial Mail Receiving Agency).
Tip: If you use a CMRA address, it’s best to keep track of everywhere you’re using this address in a spreadsheet or document. The reason for this is that if you ever change this address (or the CMRA goes out of business years later), you can’t forward mail via the USPS from a CMRA address. Instead, you’ll need to update these company/place manually with your new address. This is one of the trade-offs/downsides of CMRAs.
Going back to the Registered Agent, if you need to hire a Commercial Registered Agent (we recommend Northwest), their address would be used on your LLC formation document (in the Registered Agent section). And if you wanted more privacy throughout the filing (which will be on public record), Northwest will let you use their address throughout the formation document, for all the address fields.
If you get a mailbox rental address, that wouldn’t need to be used on he LLC formation document, but it would instead be used on your website , email, etc., and given out to those you do business with. Hope that helps!
Any info on obtaining a CPA in Wyoming? Most are not taking on new clients
Hi Marcus, please see accountant for LLC. We have recommendations there. Thanks.
Hello there, I am trying to file the Annual Report but http://wyobiz.wy.gov/ This site can’t be reached. I am outside of the US, is there any way of doing it?
Hi Karim, we recommend using a VPN or proxy site to get through.
Hi Matt, I would like to have the Wyoming LLC as my holding company. Can I DBA other operating LLCs in different states?
Hi Sable, yes, you can have a Wyoming LLC own “child” LLCs in other states. And those “child” LLCs can have a DBA (or DBAs).
Hello Matt,
A friend of mine from another country asked me to assist him to create an LLC in Wyoming. Northwest asked for the information of contact person living in the US to communicate in case of being asked by the State. Does being a contact person impose a legal responsibility on me in the eyes of the state?
Hi Sam, I actually don’t know the full details here, so can’t comment for sure. If it were me, I’d just have my friend form the LLC with Northwest or Doola directly.
Hello, Matt Horwitz:
These are the most clear and comprehensive LLC guides.
Thanks for your efforts!
Hey John, thank you so much! Really appreciate the kind words and I’m glad we could help :)
Hi Matt, I opened an LLC in Wyoming, but I think I made mistake and didn’t check myself as MEMBER, but MANAGER. So I don’t have members in LLC, only MANAGER (me). What do I need to do to put myself as member in LLC? LLC is single member company. Best regards!
Hi Amadeus, there is no place on the Wyoming LLC Articles of Organization to list either Members or Managers. That is done in your LLC Operating Agreement, which is a private document. So by creating your Wyoming LLC Operating Agreement, you’ll be choosing the management of your LLC and you’ll be able to list the Managers and/or Members. Hope that helps.
Hi Matt,
Actually you are a great man because you give very valuable information and support free. I have just one question ad want to get your comments.
I am not citizen of US and I live in Turkey I would like to form an LLC is WY and my aim is to sell products with e-commerce. Should I file my LLC to other states as a foreign LLC on tax side?
Regards
Taner
Thanks Taner! As a non-US resident, you can form an LLC in any state that you’d like. Here are some other helpful articles for non-US residents:
Matt, nice website, very easy to use, and very helpful. I was wondering your recommendation on the following. We are forming an LLC in Wyoming for our Wyoming farm; however, we live in Arizona. I understand all the requirements of a Registered Agent, etc. I was considering using Wells Fargo for our bank because they have so many locations, which will be helpful when we travel. Would it make any difference if we open our account at a Wells Fargo in Arizona? Or would it be better to do it in Wyoming?
Hi Melody, thank you! You should be able to open an LLC bank account for your Wyoming LLC with Wells Fargo in either Wyoming or in Arizona. Technically, Wells Fargo opens a “Wyoming” account from the branch in Arizona. Hope that helps.
HI Matt,
Very helpful information and well structured. Thanks.
I’m a foreigner and want to open LLC in WY in order to do online (e-commerce) business in America. Can a friend of mine open bank account (in any bank in America) for my LLC, of my behalf, if I appoint him/her in Operational agreement or some other document? Or is there any way such person to open it on my behalf?
Regards, Dim
Thanks Matt, your articles really clear things up!
One thing I’m still not sure about:
Is it possible to have multiple DBA’s on a single LLC?
You’re welcome Matt! Yes, an LLC can have as many DBAs as you’d like. Hope that helps.
Excellent website /blog
Can we email you with questions and do you have a service you offer for folks setting up LLCs
Thank you again!
Hi Betty, thank you! If you can post your question here, that would be great. We don’t have a filing service at this time. Instead, we have free courses which show people how to form their LLC themselves. Hope that helps.
Thanks for this huge value, Matt! I want to ask you if I’m from Europe and I want to form an LLC for my dropshipping business how much would it cost me to do this online ? I think in wyoming would be the cheapest and the best offer but I should buy an US address before ? Or what things I need to have before applying to form an LLC ? And if I get it right, all this will cost me 100$ and after a year I will pay 50$ for the annual report ? There are any other extra costs at the start ?
Hey George, you’re welcome! You’re pretty much right… you just forgot the Registered Agent cost (if needed). So there are 3 addresses needed in the Wyoming Articles of Organization. Registered Agent’s address, Principal Office Address, and Mailing Address. Both the Principal Office Address and Mailing Address can be located in any county (including Europe) or any state (the addresses don’t have to be in Wyoming), however, the Registered Agent’s address must be a street address located in Wyoming. If you have an address in Wyoming, or have a friend or family member with an address in Wyoming, then you (or they) can serve as your LLC’s Registered Agent. There is no cost to this. If that’s not the case, then you’ll need to hire a Commercial Registered Agent, which will cost you about $125 per year. Please see our recommendations above on this page or in our Registered Agent lesson. So having said all that, your total costs will be $125 for Commercial Registered Agent (which you’ll want to do first… just takes a few minutes), $100 for Articles of Organization, and $50 for the Annual Report each year. Hope that helps!
this is really a university not just a website, so much helpful infos , thank you so much
Thanks for the awesome comment! You’re very welcome :)
Matt, great website and far more helpful than a lawyer. Do you have more resources for understanding how a nominee manager works for a Wyoming LLC (manager managed) to gain more anonymity, particularly if you use some registered agent company that says they will act as nominee manager for like $500 to $3000
Hey Young, thank you for the kind words. We have not fully researched Nominee Managers for Wyoming LLCs, so at this point, we don’t have any information on the subject. Apologies we could not be of more assistance at this time. We have it on our list though, so thank you and best wishes :)
easy to read and very informative
Hey Harold, happy we could help. Thank you for the nice comment!