BusinessAnywhere Review: Get a Stress-Free LLC? (In 2024)

Simple and Streamlined LLC Formation So You Can Worry About the Rest

One of the greatest things about entrepreneurship is the freedom it provides. As an owner or co-owner of a Limited Liability Company (LLC), you get to decide exactly what, when, and how you want to run your business. That said, you’ll also be dealing with paperwork and procedures that you wouldn’t have to deal with otherwise, which can often feel constraining.

BusinessAnywhere aims to give that freedom back to entrepreneurs and digital nomads by providing them with direct and intuitive tools to register and manage LLCs, S-corporations, and C-corporations. The goal is simplicity above all else, so you won’t find any of the branding, consulting, or digital presence features offered by other providers.

This means that BusinessAnywhere has to deliver efficiency and ease of use if it’s going to earn your business. Does it?

After careful research into the company, the experience of previous customers, and how it stands compared to the competition, I can tell you that the service is every bit as easy and efficient as it has to be. However, the essentials-only approach might not work for everyone, and while the price might be justified, I wouldn’t call it cheap.

Still, if you’re willing to meet it on its level, BusinessAnywhere could be exactly what you need to take the trouble out of creating and running your LLC.

The Complete Package for Handling Your LLC

While BusinessAnywhere might not include as many nice-to-have features as some of its competition, it comes with all the essential tools for registering and managing your LLC. That applies regardless of the state in which you want to register.

If you want to register a different kind of entity, BusinessAnywhere offers S-corporation and C-corporation formation services as well. Overall, it’s a pretty good deal for a well-rounded (if a little bare-bones) service. The offer is especially attractive when you keep in mind that BusinessAnywhere doesn’t use third-party services for its core features, which means that you won’t have to deal with a bunch of different terms of service or sudden upcharges.

However, some of the most attractive features are priced separately, so you will have to decide which services are worth the extra fees and which aren’t.

Filing Times

BusinessAnywhere offers a respectable filing time of 1 to 2 weeks after application with its LLC Package One. That’s pretty standard for most LLC formation services, but the filing times get really impressive with Packages Two and Three, which offer filing times of 2 to 3 business days.

Keep in mind, however, that no LLC formation service (BusinessAnywhere or otherwise) can ensure processing times on a given Secretary of State’s side, which might vary depending on a variety of factors. Some states could take weeks or even months to fulfill a request, so the expedited option won’t make much of a difference if that’s the case.

Still, BusinessAnywhere’s expedited filing times can speed up the process to a degree, so you can focus on what you can control and not worry about what you can’t.

Free EIN Application With LLC Packages Two and Three

An Employer Identification Number (EIN) is to your business what your Social Security number is to your person. An EIN is a unique tax ID for your business, and while it’s not always legally required, you will need an EIN to create a business bank account, take out business loans, and hire employees.

Though you can apply for an EIN on your own (just like with LLC registration), the process can be a bit of a hassle (just like with LLC registration), and small mistakes in the process can lead to lots of headaches down the line (just like…).

Luckily, starting with the LLC Package Two or Three, BusinessAnywhere can take care of the EIN application for you. Not only does this ensure the process will go smoothly, but it also maximizes efficiency, as the EIN application is handled parallel to the LLC registration process.

Free Registered Agent Service for a Year

It’s legally required for all LLCs in the United States to appoint a Registered Agent. Think of a Registered Agent as the state-facing representative of your company. Whenever the state of registration needs to establish official communication with your company, they will be its point of contact.

By law, a Registered Agent has to be a resident of the company’s state of formation and be available during normal business hours. That means that digital nomads, expats, and non-US citizens can’t serve as Registered Agents for their own companies.

Even if you can do it, being a Registered Agent is a full-time commitment, and it should be considered a full-time job. That’s why BusinessAnywhere offers Registered Agent services for all 50 states.

What’s more, if you decide to go with BusinessAnywhere, you get the Registered Agent service for free during the first year with any of the LLC formation packages. This can help reduce the hassle in getting your business off the ground.

Keep in mind that the service is only free for the first year. After that, you’ll either have to go through the legal procedure for changing your Registered Agent or renew the service for $149 per year.

Keep Your Mail Secured With the Virtual Mailbox Service

Besides LLC formation, BusinessAnywhere is widely known for its virtual mailbox service. The service is fairly straightforward: you choose a physical location to set up your mailbox (currently, the options are Florida, Wyoming, New Mexico, and Arizona), and BusinessAnywhere will digitize every document you receive and send it to your virtual mailbox.

If you receive a package or any important document that you’d rather receive in person, BusinessAnywhere can forward it to wherever you’d like.

With the virtual mailbox service, you can run your business remotely without having to worry about missing any important correspondence or having to change your mailing address regularly.

Top-Quality Service, Even for Non-US Residents

Don’t worry if you’re a non-US resident that wants to start an LLC inside the US, BusinessAnywhere has you covered. Not only does it offer a complete service for smooth operations outside of the US (like the Registered Agent and virtual mailbox services), a customer support representative assured me that BusinessAnywhere helps non-US residents every day and takes steps to keep the process as smooth as possible.

BusinessAnywhere Is About as Easy to Use as It Gets

BusinessAnywhere goes above and beyond to make every part of LLC formation easy. That means optimizing everything about both the sign-up process and the day-to-day operations to be as user-friendly as they can be.

The visual design of the customer account dashboard might need an update, but other than that, BusinessAnywhere excels on the customer-facing side.

Getting Started With BusinessAnywhere

If you’re interested in signing up with BusinessAnywhere, all you have to do is head over to BusinessAnywhere.io and click on the Sign Up for Free button. At this stage, all you will have to input is your full name, email address, and password. After that, you’ll be redirected to your online dashboard.

On the dashboard, you’ll just have to choose which service you’re interested in purchasing and click on the button. For LLC formation services, click on the Register a Business button and select your business type and state of formation. After that, just select your package, enter your payment information, and present the necessary verification documents.

An Intuitive Dashboard for Managing Your Business

BusinessAnywhere’s dashboard isn’t just for the initial application either. From the dashboard, you can check on your pending movements, purchase extra features, and manage your current service. If you want to keep track of your business on the go, BusinessAnywhere also offers a mobile app that lets you manage your account with your smartphone.

The user interface (UI) can feel a little sluggish, and the dashboard itself looks very outdated, though it works just fine. That said, aesthetic presentation is the last thing that matters when business software works well, and BusinessAnywhere’s works well indeed.

Notarize Important Documents From Anywhere in the World

As the owner of a business, you’ll inevitably need to have documents notarized at some point. Usually, this isn’t a major issue. But if you’re a digital nomad or simply happen to travel a lot, the details can get complicated.

If you’re ever in a hurry, BusinessAnywhere offers a subscription-free online notary service. This means that you’ll only have to pay on a per-document basis, and the service is available at any time (though processing times might vary).

Affordable Starting Rates With Steep Renewal Charges

To form your LLC with BusinessAnywhere, you’ll have to choose from three different packages. The first package (aptly named Package One) includes LLC filing in 1 to 2 weeks, an operating agreement template, and a free year of the registered agent service and registered address. The main additions to the subsequent packages are expedited filing (2 to 3 business days) and EIN number application for Package Two, and a virtual mailbox with a physical address for Package Three.

BusinessAnywhere’s pricing is in line with most LLC formation services. However, you should be aware that the renewal prices are different from the starting prices. The difference is particularly striking with LLC Package One, since its renewal price is more than twice as expensive as its starting price, and that’s without considering state renewal fees.

Though the difference is pretty outrageous on the first package, renewal fees for Packages Two and Three are a lot more reasonable, with each costing about $100 less than the starting price. Still, steep yearly renewal fees are one of BusinessAnywhere’s greatest flaws, especially when you consider that some services only charge a one-time fee.

You will also have to pay extra for any add-ons you choose to integrate into your service, but they are well worth the price, especially when you consider that BusinessAnywhere’s extras do not come from third-party providers, which means they integrate seamlessly with one another.

To provide you with a clear understanding of the expenses for each add-on, let’s break it down: The Registered Agent service requires an annual payment of $149, and its renewal takes place independently from the LLC formation packages following the initial year. Opting for a virtual mailbox for your business will amount to $20 per month for the first two packages, yet it is completely encompassed within LLC formation Package Three. Additionally, BusinessAnywhere presents an online notary service, which incurs a charge of $37 per document.

Support Is Much More Limited Than It Seems at First

Depending on where (and how) you check, there are either two, three, or four ways to contact BusinessAnywhere’s customer support: phone, live chat, a ticket system, and directly via email. The confusion stems from the fact that BusinessAnywhere really needs to update its contact information.

To test the quality of customer support, I tried contacting BusinessAnywhere through every available channel. Mostly, it didn’t work.

I started by calling the phone support number listed on BusinessAnywhere’s Facebook page and its Better Business Bureau (BBB) page, but not on its official website. I called twice, and the same thing happened both times: the phone rang for a couple of seconds, then I heard the distinctive *click* of the call going through, and then all I heard was complete silence for three minutes, after which an automated voice said goodbye to me and hung up.

I also tried using the (much more prominently displayed) live chat option. After I typed my query and pressed Enter, the automated bot prompted me to input my email address, after which I got no further response. Or at least I thought so until I received a short and to-the-point response in my email. As it turns out, the “live chat” option actually operates like a ticket system.

Finally, I tried sending my questions directly via email. I wanted to know if BusinessAnywhere offered registration services for non-US citizens, whether it offered a name availability search, and whether it could help me register a Doing Business As (DBA) name for my company. I got an answer back in just a couple of hours, and on a Sunday, no less.

BusinessAnywhere answered my questions in full… eventually, but that’s about all I can say for customer support.