If you need LLC formation services in Maine in 2026, here's the order we'd go in: Mainstay Filing ($199), ME Registered Agent.org ($199) and Maine Registered Agent.co ($199). Here's the money: $175 to the state, $397 to $597 to a service across three years.
Straight from the LLC Straight Talk editorial team
The short of it
The short of it
What the state charges
$175, once, up front
After that
$85 every year
Registered agent
Yes, you have to
Who we'd use
Mainstay Filing, ME Registered Agent.org then Maine Registered Agent.co
Service fees only, from each company's prices on November 13, 2026. State fees are the same whoever you pick.
What you need to know
What's it cost to form an LLC here?
Figure $175 for the state, plus $199 if you hire help in year one.
Add the recurring report and the state's fees reach $345 over three years. legislature.maine.gov, confirmed October 2026, if you don't believe us
What do I actually send the state?
Here's what starts the company: the Certificate of Formation (Form MLLC-6), sent to the Maine Secretary of State.
How long the state takes: 10 to 15 business days (home page). legislature.maine.gov, confirmed October 2026, if you don't believe us
Do I have to name a registered agent?
Every LLC must name a registered agent with an in-state street address.
A commercial registered agent listed with the Secretary of State, or a noncommercial agent: an individual or entity serving as agent in Maine, or the holder of a named position in the company.
The annual report is the one you can't forget. It's annual and runs $85. Per the state, it's due June 1.
A late filing costs $50 more.
maine.gov, confirmed August 2026, if you don't believe us
Can I just file it myself?
Nobody's making you hire anyone. State fees alone run $345 across three years.
Hiring help costs $397 to $597 more across three years.
What put number one on top?
Mainstay Filing scores best on jobs the price actually covers, and that test is worth 30%.
We run five tests: money out the door in three years (35%), jobs the price actually covers (30%), no hunting for the price (14%), no surprise at renewal (11%) and where it works (10%).
This is the tiebreaker: the first pick's price already covers the annual report, and ME Registered Agent.org makes you do it.
maine.gov, confirmed August 2026, if you don't believe us
What the state collects in three years
$345
Our sum of the rows above
The last row is our math, not the state's: filing fee, plus the reports in years two and three, plus any minimum tax. If a cost has no fixed amount, like a newspaper notice, it's explained above and left out.
Still wondering?
How long does the state take?
10 to 15 business days (home page).
Who handles the EIN?
Only Mainstay Filing throws it in. At the others it's $99 (ME Registered Agent.org) and $99 (Maine Registered Agent.co).
What if I'm late with the report?
Maine adds $50.
What's the three-year damage for each?
Over three years you're looking at $597 at Mainstay Filing, $397 at ME Registered Agent.org, $397 at Maine Registered Agent.co, before state fees.
Are the fees official?
Official Maine sources back the state side, and posted prices back the service side.
Who should I use for a LLC service in Maine?
Mainstay Filing, because the annual report gets filed inside the $199 yearly price, along with formation and the registered agent. After that, ME Registered Agent.org and Maine Registered Agent.co.