The cost of LLC in Illinois today varies upon several factors. You will need to understand which fees are necessary and which are optional, giving you additional benefits you wouldn't have access to otherwise. For example, there are basic filing fees which increase if you want to get your LLC formed faster.

What Does It Cost to Set Up an LLC in the State of Illinois?

When you create an Illinois Limited Liability Company, there are costs that are both optional and mandatory. These costs are typically government fees that apply to state forms you're required to submit in order to form your LLC.

The optional costs are:

  • Accountant fees
  • Lawyer fees
  • Fees charged by private businesses for assistance with filing forms

What are Articles of Organization?

Once an individual files Articles of Incorporation with the Illinois Secretary of State, the LLC is officially formed. The Secretary of State or SOS provides you with Articles of Organization that have already been printed — this is the minimum required in order to create the LLC.

Name Reservation Fee

You have to name your company in accordance with the LLC laws of Illinois; this information should be included in your articles. In the event that you've chosen a name that the state of Illinois does not find suitable for your business, your Articles of Incorporation will be denied. Conduct proper research before preparing the articles by determining if your name is appropriate via the Department of Business Services. 

You can reserve your name for 90 days if it is available for use and acceptable. The cost to reserve your name in December 2010 was $300. You can either reserve the name of your corporation for $50 or reserve your LLC name for $300. In the event that you decide to cancel your reservation, there is a fee associated — you'll need to pay $5 for normal processing or $50 if you would like the process expedited.

Your reserved name can be transferred — this service includes a $25 fee that is $50 if you choose the expedited method. There are other fees associated with reserving the name of your business; the Application to Adopt Assumed Name includes a $25 fee or $50 expedited fee. The fee is also $25 or $50 for expedited service of the Application to Change Assumed Name. Fees for Application to Cancel Assumed Name are $5 and $50 for regular and expedited service respectively. Completion and submission of the Assumed Name Renewal Application is $150 with a $50 fee to speed up the process.

LLC Filing Fee

In order to form an LLC in Illinois, it will be necessary to file Articles of Organization with the Secretary of State. Articles of Organization provide basic information about your LLC, such as your name, address, and registered agent’s name and address to the state. There are some fees for this filing, however. They are:

  • $150 filing fee for a regular LLC.
  • $400 filing fee for a series LLC.
  • 2.35 percent payment processing fee if the fee payment is made with a credit card.

The State of Illinois accepts MasterCard, Visa, American Express, and Discover for this credit card payment; debit cards are not recommended. The Illinois Department of Business can provide more information on this process.

Expedited and Online Service Fees

If you're looking to set your LLC up quickly, file your documents at the Chicago and Springfield office location — this is an expedited offering provided by the Secretary of State. If you want your LLC formed in 24 hours, you can file your articles along with an additional $100. It is mandatory for all requests for expedited service to be conducted in person.

As you might be able to tell, creating your Illinois LLC can be demanding depending on what your needs are. If you need help determining the cost of forming an LLC in Illinois, you can post your job on UpCounsel's marketplace. UpCounsel accepts only the top 5 percent of lawyers to its site. Lawyers on UpCounsel come from law schools such as Harvard Law and Yale Law and average 14 years of legal experience, including work with or on behalf of companies like Google, Menlo Ventures, and Airbnb.