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LegalZoom has been a leader in online legal services. It is best known for providing a single-stop shop for all of your legal needs, regardless of whether they are business, professional, or personal. LegalZoom is not the most affordable option on the market but it offers great customer service, reliability, and product flexibility. LegalZoom is a great choice for your next online lawyer services provider.
LegalZoom compared to the Best Online Legal Services
LegalZoom offers some of the best online legal services. LegalZoom is here to help you whether you need advice on family law, intellectual property protection, or forming a business.
LegalZoom’s one-off services can be more expensive than other providers from a business standpoint. Businesses that require ongoing legal advice may be able to benefit from the long-term service packages, which come with flat monthly fees. LegalZoom is a great choice for people who have frequent legal needs.
This list includes the top online legal services available today. We also discuss some important methods to follow when selecting the right service provider for you.
LegalZoom: The Good and The Bad
LegalZoom is a leading provider of online legal services. It offers a lot of benefits to potential customers. Even the most reliable providers can still make improvements. To help you decide if LegalZoom is the right choice for your company, we’ll take a look at all the benefits and drawbacks of their offerings.
The Good
LegalZoom’s 20-year history in the legal services sector has been a major player for more than two decades. It has helped more than 2 million entrepreneurs and small-business owners make their dreams of starting their own businesses a reality. This level of expertise means that you can be confident that your legal needs will be met.
A wide range of legal services: LegalZoom is your one-stop shop for all your business, personal, and professional legal needs. The industry’s most comprehensive range of services is offered by LegalZoom. LegalZoom covers everything you need, from business formation to intellectual and property protection, registered agent services to tax agreements and contracts, to tax contracts and agreements. LegalZoom will provide all the services that you need to launch and manage your business.
Affordable Business Advisory Plan. LegalZoom’s Business Plan gives business owners access to affordable year-round legal help for a flat monthly fee. This plan is ideal for those who need regular legal assistance to protect their business, such as with contract and agreement preparation, copyrights and legal forms, and general advice. This plan is far cheaper than using LegalZoom’s custom services, and it’s also the most affordable.
Excellent Customer Support: Previous reviews of LegalZoom’s customer service have indicated that it was inconsistent and sometimes disappointing. Recent reviews have shown that they’ve improved their customer support. Customers continue to praise their support representatives and report great customer service. The support team is helpful, friendly, and very knowledgeable. This is exactly what you would expect from support staff.
Extended Customer Support Hours. LegalZoom offers extended customer support hours, which is a significant improvement over its competitors. LegalZoom’s support staff can be reached at any time of the day. The US-based support team can be reached via email, phone, and live chat between 5 am and 7 pm (PT), Monday through Friday, and 7 am to 4 pm on weekends.
Long-term Satisfaction Guarantee: Although many online legal services providers offer some form of satisfaction guarantee, almost none offer two months. LegalZoom will make every effort to resolve any issues you have with their services.
The Bad
LegalZoom isn’t the cheapest service provider. However, they are not the most expensive. Their one-off services tend to be more expensive. The lead-in package for business formation starts at $79 plus the state fees. It doesn’t include any impressive or advanced features. This means that you’re paying for the services of an experienced and trustworthy provider. We consider this a bit more expensive.
Excessive upsells: If you want to start a business with LegalZoom you will be faced with a series of upsells just before you get to the package selection screen. The process was quite complicated for us. The process assumes you will use LegalZooms registered agent services and does not provide any information about the cost involved. Some of the additional services, such as operating agreements and EINs, are already included in other providers’ packages.
Expensive Register Agent Services: LegalZoom’s registered agent’s services cost $299 per annum. Most competitors offer registered agent services at around $150 per annum, while some others go as low as $100. ZenBusiness and Incfile offer registered agent services free of charge for the first year.
Slow Turnaround Times: LegalZoom’s turnaround times for business formation are slower than its competitors. LegalZoom will take 30 days to complete your business formation process. While other providers may deliver your documents within seven days, LegalZoom can take up to 30 days. Even LegalZoom’s expedited services take 10 business days to complete.
LegalZoom Pricing Options and Pricing
LegalZoom provides a variety of online legal services, as we mentioned. We’ll be focusing on LegalZoom’s business advisory plan and business formation services for this review.
LegalZoom’s services for business formation start at:
- LLC formation: $79 plus state filing fees
- Corporation formation: $149 plus state filing fees
- Services of a registered agent: $299 per annum
These prices are certainly not the most expensive in the industry. However, if you look closely at the features that you get for your money they aren’t very high-value.
The lead-in formation packages, for example, include the basic features of a comprehensive name search, paperwork filing, an online tracker, lifetime customer service, digital access to formation documents, and an online order tracker. They include only the essentials.
LegalZoom, on the other hand, offers business owners who need ongoing legal assistance access to their Business Advisory Plan at a reasonable price. You’ll get access to an attorney for a flat monthly charge. This will allow you to review contracts and agreements and provide personalized advice.
The Business Advisory Plan pricing is $39.08 per Month over 12 months or $43.16 Per Month over 6 months.
We’ll discuss the pricing of each service below. But the main takeaway is that LegalZoom is not the best choice if you are looking for the most affordable online legal service provider.
LegalZoom is an excellent choice if you’re looking for a reliable and experienced provider who can assist you with any legal issue.
LegalZoom LLC Services
LegalZoom has more than 2,000,000 businesses set up LLCs.
LegalZoom makes it simple for anyone to get started. It is easy to get started and the prices are very affordable. It’s easy to start your business.
- Tell LegalZoom everything about your business
- Choose your preferred package for business formation
- Relax and let LegalZoom prepare and file your paperwork.
LegalZoom’s business name availability checker is also available. This will ensure that your chosen business name is in stock. You can skip this step if you aren’t sure yet.
LegalZoom will try to sell you a lot of packages before you can choose your business formation package. You don’t need all of these products. If you are looking to start your own business, these packages may not be necessary. They can always be added later.
After wading through all the upsells, eventually, you will land at the LLC packages. Then, you’ll be asked to choose one of these:
- Economy: $79 plus state fees
- Standard: $329 plus state fees
- Express Gold: $349 plus state fees
All plans include a complete name search, business entity filing, Peace of Mind review, and a 30-minute tax savings consultation. Standard and Express Gold packages include a deluxe creator’s kit, personalized business embosser, and membership certificates.
What is the key difference between these three packages? Filing time. The Express Gold Express shipping option offers a 10-day turnaround for Express Gold and Standard packages.
LegalZoom Incorporation Services
LegalZoom is another popular choice for companies looking to incorporate. It allows businesses to create a C Corporation or an S Corporation.
LegalZoom’s support staff is available to provide personalized advice if you aren’t sure which option is best for you.
LegalZoom makes it easy to incorporate your business. LegalZoom will ask you questions about your business and then choose the package option that suits your needs.
Pricing and packages for incorporation by LegalZoom are:
- Economy: $149 plus state fees
- Standard: $329 plus state fees
- Express Gold: $349 plus state fees
All plans include a business name availability check, incorporation documents, filing, and lifetime customer service. You also get a “next steps” guide and peace-of-mind review. Standard and Express Gold incorporation packages include a deluxe organizer as well as official seals and certificates.
You can pay $20 more for the Standard plan if you are willing to pay. The Express Gold package will allow you to receive express shipping and rush processing from the Secretary of State.
The turnaround time is the biggest difference between these plans. The Economy plan, with its 30-day turnaround, will be sufficient if you are not in a hurry to form your company. If you’re in a hurry to form your corporation, the Economy plan with its 30-day turnaround will suffice.
LegalZoom Agent Services
It doesn’t matter what you do, every business must have a registered agent.
Official mail acceptance is handled by registered agents on behalf of your company. This includes court documents (if served), official mail from the state, state tax notifications, secretary notifications, annual report notices, and state tax notifications.
They help you to stay compliant and ensure that you don’t miss important filing deadlines.
LegalZoom’s registered agent’s services start at $299 per annum and include:
- $1,000,000 Identity theft Protection and Credit Monitoring
- Unlimited cloud storage for business documents
- Access to the compliance calendar, including important deadlines
- When switching from an existing RA, coverage for fees and paperwork
It is a good idea to use the same service provider for your business formation and registration agent to ensure everything runs smoothly. LegalZoom offers registered agent services to business formation customers at a reduced rate of $249 in the first year.
However, if you are looking for standalone registered agent services, there will be cheaper options elsewhere.
LegalZoom Rankings
LegalZoom is a leading online legal service. LegalZoom is a reliable and trustworthy solution that offers a variety of solutions for personal, business, and professional legal needs.
LegalZoom offers everything you need, from business formation to registered agent services, lawyer consultations, trademark registrations, and estate planning. It is trusted by over two million users and is the most widely used online legal service.
It’s worth noting that some of LegalZoom’s services are a bit pricey compared to the competition–specifically when it comes to registered agent services. If you have a tight budget, you might want to look elsewhere.
View all of our top picks to find out more about LegalZoom alternatives, and in-depth reviews of other options in online legal services.
- Rocket Lawyer Best for Most
- Incfile Best for Business Formation
- LegalZoom is Best for flat fees, versatility
- UpCounsel is the best for complex legal issues
- Avvo is Best for legal advice
- LegalMatch is the best way to find an attorney in your area
Summary
LegalZoom is a leading provider of business formation services. You can access ongoing legal advice and flexible legal services for a flat monthly charge. LegalZoom’s lead-in formation packages are affordable, but they allow businesses to easily form their business without spending a lot.
LegalZoom, an industry leader in online legal services and business formation, is the best option for you.
