Inc Authority Review: Pros, Cons, & Alternatives
BY Reviano Team, Nov. 05, 2023
Review Summary
Service Name:
Inc Authority
Service Type:
Business Formation Service
Monthly fee:
None
Summary:
Inc Authority is an online service that offers business formation solutions, business ownership, and legal assistance to business owners looking to get their businesses off the ground.
Rating:
Are you a new business owner looking to form an LLC but don't want to stress yourself with the administrative, legal, and formation processes? If yes, you need Inc Authority's LLC services.
Inc Authority is an online service that adds ease to the business formation process. We are providing a comprehensive review of Inc Authority's services. It also highlights its pros and cons, comparing it against competitors to help you choose the best option for your business needs.
What is Inc Authority?
Inc Authority is a business formation service designed for business owners looking to start a business. It offers free filing as part of its basic, entry-level package, among other services like business license search, website design, business plan preparation, business license report, etc.
Aside from being a business formation service, Inc Authority also doubles as a registered agent. It'll receive legal documents on behalf of your LLC and forward them to you. Suppose your business doesn't have a physical office, and you don't want to use your residential address as your business address. In that case, we advise using Inc Authority's registered agent service.
Who Would Benefit from the Services of iPostal1?
Inc Authority is perfect for this set of individuals:
Overall, Inc Authority focuses on adding ease to the business formation process, making it beneficial for entrepreneurs who don't want to stress over the administrative struggle that comes with starting a business.
What are the Services that Inc Authority Provides?
Inc Authority provides an array of business-formation-related services and free LLC services. Here is a list of their core services:
Pros
Cons
iPostal1 Services in Detail
Trademark services
Do you want to protect your brand identity, product, or service? If yes, you need to consider trademark services. Fortunately, Inc Authority offers this service for an extra fee.
With this program, the company helps customers complete the trademark registration process with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). It also offers status updates, lifetime support, and other assistance.
Website and marketing services
Did you know that Inc Authority is one of the few LLC services that offers website and marketing services? The company helps connect business founders with a custom website designer. It also provides customers with a premium custom website design, a well-designed logo, 500 personalized business cards, SEO-optimized content for their website, etc. All these services can be gotten for an extra fee.
Online document access
Inc Authority provides customers with a Client Portal that offers them access to online documents. The portal also gives customers access to its paid services like: Business compliance, business funding analysis, business plans, accounting, logos, payroll services, taxes, trusts and websites.
Formation service
Inc Authority offers its customers free LLC formation services. You are only required to pay the state filing fee. The state filing fees vary per State, with Montana being the cheapest ($35) and Massachusetts the most expensive ($500). After paying the necessary fees, the company will provide you with access to professionals who'll help file the legal docs of your limited liability company.
Registered agent service
Inc Authority offers free registered agent services to its customers as part of its free LLC services. These services include conducting a name availability search and filing the necessary business formation documents.
After the business has been formed, Inc Authority will act as its registered agent for a year, receiving legal documents for the business free of charge. And after the duration, the customer must select one from its paid bundles.
Name availability search
It's important to confirm the availability of a name before registering your business. Inc Authority can help with this. The online business formation service will conduct a comprehensive business name availability search without charging a dime.
Article of organization
Inc Authority will file articles of organization for customers whose business is formed as an LLC. If yours is formed as a corporation, it'll file articles of incorporation with the relevant Secretary of State. While this service falls under the Inc Authority's "free LLC services," customers must pay the state fees.
Article of organization
Inc Authority's tax planning consultation service is designed to help business founders save more of their business income. The service is free. Plus, it lasts an hour and comes in their basic services package, starter, executive, and tycoon business bundles.
We recommended leveraging this free service to ask questions about your LLC taxes. While you do so, note that free tax planning consultations like this are aimed at selling tax services. They don't often provide extensive tax info. In addition, you should note that Inc Authority doesn't offer legal or tax advice. It outsources this service to a third party that provides legal help or tax advice.
Business plan preparation
Do you need help drafting your business plan? You can leverage Inc Authority's business plan preparation services. This service, which isn't free, offers customers access to a business plan advisor.
The professional will offer customers the guidance they need to create a compressive business plan that doesn't fall short of bank and investor guidelines. In addition, within the first three months of creation, Inc Authority will make changes (if necessary) or edits to the business plan free of charge.
Additional services
Inc Authority offers customers other additional services. They include Business license search, business bank account formations and funding, corporate bylaws service, business funding analysis, EIN filing service, and LLC operating agreement drafting service.
The LLC service also provides a business credit coach to help business owners address their credit issues and offers access to their business license reporting software. Plus, they work with a prominent web hosting company, GoDaddy, to get your business a website domain name.
Inc Authority Pricing
Inc Authority offers customers four packages. They include:
Entry LLC Formation Package (0$ plus state fees)
This free package comes with the following services:
Who is it for?
This plan has no service fees, making it ideal for small businesses on a limited budget. They'll have access to free LLC service and registered agents for a year.
Starter Business Bundle ($399 + State Filing Fees):
This bundle includes all the services in the entry LLC formation package (previous package). It also comes with other services like:
Who is it for?
The starter business bundle plan is perfect for medium-sized businesses with employees. With this plan, you can acquire an employer identification number (EIN), which is necessary to open a business checking account and get a business credit card. Many mid-sized business owners opt for this bundle to kick-start their LLCs.
PS: EIN is free and can be gotten from the Internal Revenue Service. You may want to visit Inc Authority website for more info.
Executive Business Bundle ($499 + State Fees):
This bundle has everything in the entry LLC formation bundle and the starter business bundle, including:
Who is it for?
If you run a mid-sized business and need business credit and loans from financial institutions, this plan is for you. On the other hand, if you run a small business or startup, this plan might be a bit expensive for you.
Tycoon LLC Business Bundle ( $799+ State Fees):
The last bundle has everything in the LLC formation bundle, the starter business bundle, and the business LLC executive bundle. It also includes:
Who is it for?
Obviously, this plan is for the big guns in the industry. Its high cost ensures that you get extra services. However, you may not need some services when setting up an LLC. Thus, for some business founders, this plan can be overpriced with unnecessary services.
Inc Authority Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, you can. In many states, you can appoint your business to act as its own registered agent.
With an impressive rating of 4.8/5 on Trustpilot from over 27,000 reviews, it is safe to say that Inc Authority can be trusted. Trustpilot ranks the legal service company third out of 77 legal service companies and twelfth out of over 300 business-to-business service companies.
Unfortunately, the Better Business Bureau (BBB) rates the company with an "F" for not responding to two filed complaints. Regardless, its record on Trustpilot speaks volumes about the service and customer trust level.
Absolutely! The company has an impressive rating of 4.8/5 on Trustpilot, and its fantastic track record, dating back to 1989, speaks for itself. Since its inception, the company has formed over 130,000 business entities.
No, they don't. According to them: "All sales are final due to the hard cost incurred with the filing of entities with your chosen state."
Yes, you can. However, to save yourself the stress, time, and effort and ensure that the process is done correctly, you may want to leverage the services of a business formation service. Alternatively, you can hire a lawyer, but it costs more than an online business formation service.
You could get your LLC ready within two to three weeks, depending on your State. Each State has different processing times, ranging from a few days to some months.
The first thing you need to start an LLC or corporation is a business idea. Next, you need to come up with a business plan. Finally, you must acquire a license to operate, among other things.
While Inc Authority's basic LLC filing service comes at no cost, you must pay for its premium package to access other beneficial services.
Inc Authority services the entire 50 states in the United States.
What Do Customers Say About Inc Authority? (Customer reviews and testimonials)
Based on its impressive reviews on Trustpilot (4.8/5 from over 27,000 reviews), it's fair to say that many Inc Authority clients are satisfied with its services. A considerable percentage of Inc Authority's positive reviews centered on its exceptional customer service, seamless process, and outstanding overall experience.
Of course, some customers weren't satisfied with their service, with complaints about hard selling being one of the most common issues. There are also complaints about a lack of transparency regarding services and pricing, incorrect filing, and poor customer support. Irrespective of the numerous positive reviews online, we believe that most customers are satisfied with Inc Authority's service.
Inc Authority Alternatives & Competitors
Our Inc Authority review won't be complete without mentioning how their services compare to their main competitors in the market (Incfile, Northwest Registered Agent, ZenBusiness, etc.).
One standout feature of Northwest is its personalized customer support, with customers singing their praises on Trustpilot. And unlike Inc Authority, Northwest offers refunds to dissatisfied customers. Plus, it has transparent pricing and doesn't pressure upsell like Inc Authority.
Consider Northwest if you are looking for a company that offers personalized customer support. But, if you want to get your LLC professionally formed by a company with an impressive track record for free, consider Inc Authority.
Pros
Cons
Incfile's premium service is affordable ($199 + filing fees) compared to its counterpart. It also has transparent pricing and a price quote calculator that reflects the current state filing fees.
Inc Authority allows users to add à la carte service to their free business formation. Its registered agent service also costs $99 per year (after a year of free service), less than that of Incfile, $199 (after a year of free service). Consider Inc Authority if you want basic LLC formation services at an affordable price. Go for Incfile if you are short of time and want to set up your business quickly.
Pros
Cons
Unlike Inc Authority, ZenBusiness has a refund policy and transparent pricing and provides tools for customers to manage their business finances from one hub. If you are looking for help with accounting and bookkeeping, ZenBusiness can help.
However, Inc Authority has some edge over ZenBusiness. The company offers a free year of registered agent services and free EIN services. It also provides a basic LLC formation package free of charge, while ZenBusiness charges $49 for this service. Consider ZenBusiness if you are looking for a service that offers a streamlined and user-friendly experience.
Pros
Cons
Legal Zoom
Legal Zoom offers customers a user-friendly website to improve user experience, a mobile app for convenience, and legal administration services, all of which Inc Authority lacks. Legal Zoom also enjoys good reviews online (4.6/5 from 3,000+ reviews).
Inc Authority offers free registered agent service (for a year), while Legal Zoom doesn't. The company also offers more features and high-quality pricing bundles than Legal Zoom. Businesses that need help filing the registration paperwork should go for Inc Authority. Consider Legal Zoom if you want a complete line of legal setup.
Pros
Cons
BetterLegal offers straightforward and transparent pricing. Unlike Inc Authority, it offers customers what they need in one click. It also has one of the best turnaround times (2 days) compared to Inc Authority (2-3 weeks) and offers free website-building services.
However, BetterLegal lacks experience like Inc Authority, which was formed 27 years before it. Inc Authority offers free plans, legal services, and better customer service than BetterLegal. Inc Authority is a better option for an experienced LLC service with good legal support. Go for BetterLegal if you want to set up a business quickly.
Pros
Cons
Harbor Compliance
Harbor Compliance is famous for its processing time (2 days), which is better than most of its competitors. The LLC service also offers features that stand out from Inc Authority: a compliance calendar, industry-specific licensing, and complimentary annual report notifications.
While Harbor compliance has a few attractive perks, Inc Authority remains superior. The company offers a free plan, a better user experience, a full-fledged LLC package, and free registered agent service. You may go for Harbor Compliance for a straightforward business registration process. On the other hand, consider Inc Authority if you are eager to get your startup off the ground.
Pros
Cons
Final CONCLUSION
Inc Authority is the best option for business founders looking to incorporate their business without paying a dime. Its impressive track record and online reputation are two features that make it stand out from others. While we recommend Inc Authority to businesses looking for a reliable and pocket-friendly way to form an LLC, we suggest you check if its services meet your business goals. Also, you may want to consider LegalZoom or Rocket Lawyer if you need more than just LLC formation services.