Northwest is a good fit if you want a paid registered agent and plan to keep your LLC for several years. Its standard rate is $125/year. You can spend less in the first year elsewhere, and you may not need a paid agent at all.
Our recommendation rests on the published price and included services. At current rates, Northwest has the lowest five-year standalone total in the table below. That does not tell us whose support is fastest or whose service is best.
Here is what you get, what costs extra, and when another option makes more sense.
What you save vs the alternatives Savings
5-year totals, single state unless noted. These are STANDALONE totals: year 1 at each provider's own first-year rate plus four years at its renewal rate. A formation package that includes the first year of registered agent service has a different five-year total: four renewal payments for the agent, plus any formation charges. Those packages are not modeled here. The two multi-state rows below compare renewal rates only, which is the fairer basis once a company is past its first year, so they are not directly comparable to the single-state rows above them.
- vs Harbor Compliance
- Save $110
- vs ZenBusiness
- Save $370
- vs LegalZoom
- Save $620
- vs LegalZoom (3 states)
- Save $1,860
- vs LegalZoom (5 states)
- Save $3,725 at Northwest's published volume rate
What Northwest actually does
Northwest receives lawsuits and official notices for your LLC, scans them and makes them available in your account. Keep your contact details current so you receive the alerts.
Its $39 formation service prepares and files the LLC paperwork, plus your state fee. The first year of registered agent service is included. Northwest uses its address on the filing where your state allows it.
Northwest also lists a domain, website, email and phone line as free identity services. Paid services, such as annual report filing and a virtual office, are separate. Check which services are active in your account.
What the price includes
These are the features that matter most when comparing the price.
A clear starting price. Registered agent service is $125/year per state. Formation is $39 plus state fees, with the first agent year included. Compare that full package with LegalZoom or another provider, not just the advertised formation fee.
Address privacy, within state rules. Northwest uses its address where the filing allows it. That can reduce how often your home address appears, but other fields may still require it. Its privacy policy says it does not sell personal information to marketers. Public filings are still public. Our home-address guide explains the limits.
Coverage across states. Northwest offers registered agent service in all 50 states. That is useful if you need an agent in more than one state and want to manage the accounts together.
Phone and email support. Both are available. We have not tested response times or compared support quality, so they are not part of our price-based recommendation.
No introductory agent rate to expire. Northwest currently charges $125 for both the first standalone year and renewal. Harbor starts at $99, then renews at $159. These are current prices, not a guarantee that any provider will hold its rate forever.
Costs and cancellation to check
Check these before signing up.
Annual report filing costs extra. Northwest charges $100 plus state fees to file a report. You can file it yourself instead. Check whether this service is active in your account; the agent renewal alone does not cover it.
Cancel online before renewal. Northwest's terms allow cancellation in your client portal. Its auto-pay terms generally require at least one business day before the charge. If the LLC still needs an agent, arrange the replacement first.
Free features and paid services are different. The current identity-service page lists the domain, website, email and phone line at no cost. Older trial terms may differ. Before canceling a bundle, check what happens to the services you want to keep.
5-year cost: Northwest vs the alternatives
Compare the cost over the years you expect to use the service. The totals below assume today's rates stay unchanged.
Annual pricing across the major providers
Standalone registered agent pricing (not bundled formation packages). Verified 2026.
| Provider | Year 1 | Renewal |
|---|---|---|
| Northwest | $125 | $125/year (flat) |
| Harbor Compliance | $99 | $159/year |
| Registered Agents Inc | $200 | $200/year |
| ZenBusiness | $199 | $199/year |
| LegalZoom | $249 | $249/year |
ZenBusiness comparisons use its advertised $199/year standard rate. The $99 first-year offer is for LLC formation; we have not verified a quote for an existing business.
5-year total cost (single state) Compared providers
Total registered agent cost over a 5-year period at each provider's standard pricing.
| Provider | 5-year total | vs Northwest |
|---|---|---|
| Northwest | $625 | Baseline |
| Harbor Compliance | $735 | +$110 |
| Registered Agents Inc | $1,000 | +$375 |
| ZenBusiness | $995 | $370 more |
| LegalZoom | $1,245 | +$620 |
Northwest is not the cheapest in year 1. Harbor at $99 beats Northwest by $26. But Harbor jumps to $159 at renewal, and that gap reverses. Over 5 years on standard annual billing, Northwest has the lowest standalone total among the providers in this table. Prepaid plans and negotiated quotes can change the comparison. The savings widen with each additional state. A five-state LLC saves $3,725 over five years at Northwest's published volume rate compared with LegalZoom's standard renewal rate.
For the full price-comparison breakdown including formation services like Bizee and ZenBusiness, see our 2026 registered agent pricing comparison.
Multi-state pricing
Northwest charges $125/year per state at its standard rate and publishes $100 per state annually for 5 or more states. A five-state LLC therefore pays $500 per year, or $2,500 over five years at that rate.
For 5+ states, Northwest publishes $100 per state annually. Harbor Compliance offers multi-state quotes, but a discount does not establish that it is cheaper. See our Harbor vs Northwest comparison for the published rates and a clearly labeled hypothetical quote.
Who should use Northwest
Northwest is worth considering in these situations.
You want a single registered agent across multiple states. Flat per-state pricing scales predictably, and one login covers everything.
You want to use an agent address on your filings. Check the other address fields too. Hiring an agent does not automatically keep your home address off every public record.
You want phone support as an option. Northwest offers it alongside email. If support is your deciding factor, ask your questions before buying.
You want filing help and a paid agent together. The formation service is $39 plus state fees, including the first agent year. Compare the full first-year cost with other packages.
Your current agent renewal is more expensive. Check the services you would lose and any prepaid months before switching. Our LegalZoom and ZenBusiness guides work through the costs.
Who should look elsewhere
If your priority is the absolute lowest cost in year 1. Harbor Compliance at $99 beats Northwest year 1. The renewal jumps to $159 in year 2, but if year-1 cost is the only metric that matters, Harbor wins.
If you want the bare minimum. If you live in your registered state, do not mind your home address being public, and are reliably available during business hours, you can be your own registered agent for $0. See our guide to being your own agent.
If you need broader compliance services or have a competitive quote. Northwest publishes $100 per state annually at 5+ states. Harbor Compliance may fit when its additional services are useful or its written quote is better. Our comparison guide explains the terms.
If you need an enterprise-tier provider. For Fortune 1000, law firms, or 50+ entity portfolios, see our CSC pricing review. Northwest is not the right tier for that audience.
Real talk
- This review compares the listed providers; it does not cover every service available.
- The $39 formation fee is not the whole bill: state fees are extra. Some $0 formation offers also include an agent year. Compare what you need in the first year and at renewal.
- If you only operate in one state and have a fixed home or office address there, you may not need any paid registered agent service. Northwest is a great option, but it is not always a necessary one.
Bottom line
For an owner who wants a paid agent and plans to file their own annual reports, Northwest's $125/year rate is a reasonable place to start. If you want report filing included, compare that cost too.
Before switching, check your current renewal date and any services bundled with it. Our change-of-agent guide explains how to keep coverage in place.
Get Northwest Registered Agent
$125/year standard; $100 per state annually at 5+ states. Registered agent service and address use where state rules allow. Annual report filing is separate.
Get Northwest Registered Agent ↗Check if you need to register in other states
Answer 3 questions to find out if your LLC requires foreign qualification.
See the 5-year math for every registered agent service
Full pricing analysis with year-by-year totals for Northwest, Harbor, LegalZoom, ZenBusiness, and Bizee.
Sources, research & corrections
We checked Northwest's published agent pricing, report filing, free identity services, address limits, privacy policy and cancellation and auto-pay terms on September 26, 2026. This is document research, not a test purchase or customer-support test. Other providers' pricing sources and review dates are in our cost guide.This review reflects publicly available pricing and features as of 2026. Prices may change. Verify current rates on each provider's website before signing up. Some links on this page are affiliate links.