$50 to form your Mississippi LLC

Mississippi LLC Cost: $50 Filing + $0 Annual Report (2026)

Forming an LLC in Mississippi costs $50 to file a Certificate of Formation with the Secretary of State and $0 per year for the annual report (the annual report must be filed each year, but there is no filing fee for domestic Mississippi LLCs). Mississippi has no LLC franchise tax for pass-through entities, no publication requirement, and no minimum business privilege fee. Five-year cost of ownership (DIY): $50, the lowest in the United States, tied with New Mexico. Mississippi pairs the cheapest formation cost in the country with truly free annual reports for domestic LLCs, producing the most cost-efficient state for LLC ownership over any timeline.

Reviewed by LLC Formation Cost Editorial Team, fact-checked against primary government sources • Last updated 2026-05-16 • 5 primary government sources cited

TL;DR

Mississippi LLCs file a Certificate of Formation with the Mississippi Secretary of State for $50 online. Mississippi requires an annual report each year (due by April 15), but the filing fee is $0 for domestic Mississippi LLCs. Foreign LLCs (formed in another state but qualified in Mississippi) pay $250 for the annual report. There is no franchise tax for pass-through LLCs (Mississippi’s franchise tax applies only to corporations and LLCs electing C-corp status, with a $25 minimum). Mississippi has a state personal income tax (5% top rate in 2026, declining to 4% by 2028 under HB 1668) on pass-through profits. Online filings via the SOS Business Services Online portal are processed same-day to 1 business day. The state allows anonymous formation; member and manager names are not required on the public Certificate of Formation.

Mississippi LLC cost breakdown (2026)

Line item	Cost	Source
Certificate of Formation (online)	$50	sos.ms.gov
Annual Report, domestic Mississippi LLC	$0/yr	sos.ms.gov
Annual Report, foreign LLC	$250/yr	sos.ms.gov
Franchise tax (pass-through LLCs)	$0	dor.ms.gov
Franchise tax (C-corp-elected LLCs)	$25 minimum	dor.ms.gov
Registered Agent service (optional)	$50-$200/yr	private market
Year 1 total (DIY online)	$50
Year 2+ ongoing (DIY)	$0/yr
5-year total (DIY)	$50	(formation only)

All figures verified 2026-05-16 from primary Mississippi state sources.

Why Mississippi is the cheapest state in the country

Mississippi’s combination of a $50 filing fee and $0 annual report fee for domestic LLCs produces the lowest 5-year ownership cost in the United States, tied with New Mexico ($50 + no annual report). The structural reasons:

• $50 formation cost, the cheapest in the country alongside New Mexico, Michigan, Missouri, Arizona, and Montana (all also $50).
• $0 annual report for domestic LLCs, Mississippi requires the annual report to be filed each year by April 15 but waives the filing fee for domestic LLCs. Foreign LLCs (formed elsewhere, qualified in Mississippi) pay $250 for the annual report.
• No franchise tax on pass-through LLCs, Mississippi’s franchise tax (Miss. Code § 27-13-7) applies only to corporations and LLCs electing C-corp status, with a $25 minimum. Default pass-through LLCs owe $0.
• No publication requirement, no business privilege fee, no business entity tax.
• Same-day to next-business-day online processing, one of the fastest in the country.

The 5-year DIY total of $50 is uniquely low. Wyoming costs $400 over five years, Iowa costs ~$125, Michigan costs $175, even New Mexico (the only other $50 state) doesn’t require an annual report at all. Mississippi requires the annual report filing (it confirms continued activity, registered office, and agent information) but the fee is genuinely zero.

The state-level personal income tax (5% top rate in 2026, scheduled to drop to 4% by 2028 under HB 1668 signed by Governor Reeves in 2022) applies to Mississippi-resident members’ share of pass-through profits, but the LLC itself owes nothing at the entity level. For non-resident formations with no Mississippi nexus, Mississippi offers a viable cheap-state alternative to Wyoming or New Mexico, with the trade-off being no statutory anonymity advantages (members and managers must be listed on the annual report, though not on the formation Certificate). Source: Miss. Code § 79-29-201, verified 2026-05-16.

Filing steps (DIY, no service)

1. Pick a name, search availability at the Mississippi SOS Business Search. Names must include “Limited Liability Company,” “LLC,” “L.L.C.,” “Limited Company,” “LC,” or “L.C.”
2. Designate a registered agent, must have a Mississippi street address (Miss. Code § 79-29-105). You can act as your own registered agent if you reside in Mississippi.
3. File Certificate of Formation, $50 fee. File online at Mississippi SOS Business Services Online or by mail to Secretary of State, P.O. Box 136, Jackson, MS 39205. Online filing is strongly preferred (same-day processing vs. multi-week mail).
4. Get a federal EIN, free at irs.gov.
5. Draft an operating agreement, not required by Mississippi law but recommended. Miss. Code § 79-29-123 recognizes operating agreements as binding between members.
6. Register for Mississippi state taxes, sales tax permit ($0) via dor.ms.gov if selling tangible goods, employer withholding registration if hiring W-2 employees.
7. Check local licensing, Jackson, Gulfport, Hattiesburg, and other municipalities may require business licenses or occupational permits.
8. Open a business bank account, Mississippi banks (Trustmark, BankPlus, Renasant, Cadence Bank) require the filed Certificate, EIN letter, and operating agreement.
9. File FinCEN BOI report, required under the federal Corporate Transparency Act within 30 days of formation. Free at fincen.gov/boi.
10. Calendar the annual report (April 15), file online via the Mississippi SOS portal. Free for domestic LLCs.

Standard processing: same-day to 1 business day for online filings via Mississippi SOS Business Services Online. Mail filings take 3-5 business days plus mail transit. Mississippi does not advertise a separate paid expedited service because online processing is already same-day. Source: Mississippi SOS Business Services, verified 2026-05-16.

Page-unique facts

• Mississippi’s $0 annual report fee is genuinely free for domestic LLCs. Foreign LLCs pay $250 for the same filing, the differential is one of the largest in the country. The structure incentivizes domestic Mississippi formation over foreign qualification. Source: Miss. Code § 79-29-1003.
• Mississippi’s personal income tax is dropping from 5% to 4% by 2028. Under HB 1668 (signed 2022), the top rate was 5% in 2023, drops to 4.7% in 2024, 4.4% in 2025, 4% in 2026, and stays at 4% through 2028 with the possibility of further reduction. This affects pass-through LLC members’ personal returns, not the LLC entity. Source: Mississippi Department of Revenue.
• Mississippi has the cheapest LLC ownership cost in the country. $50 over five years, tied with New Mexico but Mississippi requires the annual report filing (free) while New Mexico has no annual report at all. Both are functionally equivalent; Mississippi just makes you click “file” once a year.
• Mississippi adopted the Revised Mississippi LLC Act in 2010. The current statute (Miss. Code § 79-29-101 through § 79-29-1306) replaced the 1994 Mississippi LLC Act and modernized fiduciary duties, charging-order remedies, Series LLC authority, and operating-agreement enforceability.
• Mississippi authorizes Series LLCs under Miss. Code § 79-29-1201. A single $50 master filing covers multiple internal series, each with separate assets and liabilities. Less common than Delaware or Texas Series LLCs but available.

FAQ

Is Mississippi really the cheapest state for an LLC?

For raw ownership cost over five years, yes. Mississippi: $50 formation + $0 annual = $50 over five years. New Mexico: $50 formation + $0 (no annual report) = $50 over five years. The two states are tied as the cheapest in the country. Wyoming costs $400 over five years; Michigan costs $175; Iowa costs ~$125. For Mississippi-resident operators or those with Mississippi nexus, the state offers genuinely the lowest cost in the country. Source: Miss. Code § 79-29-1003, N.M. Stat. § 53-19-63.

When is my Mississippi LLC annual report due?

By April 15 each year, regardless of formation date. Mississippi uses a uniform statewide deadline. An LLC formed January 2026 owes its first annual report by April 15, 2027. An LLC formed in February 2027 (just before the deadline) still owes the report by April 15, 2027 (within weeks of formation). The report is free for domestic LLCs but must be filed; missing the deadline triggers administrative dissolution after 60 days. Source: Mississippi SOS Annual Report info.

Does Mississippi charge a franchise tax on LLCs?

Not on pass-through LLCs. Mississippi’s franchise tax (Miss. Code § 27-13-7) at $2.50 per $1,000 of capital employed, with a $25 minimum, applies only to corporations and LLCs electing C-corp status. Default-classified pass-through LLCs (single-member disregarded or multi-member partnerships) owe nothing at the entity level. Source: Mississippi Department of Revenue.

Can I form an anonymous Mississippi LLC?

Partially. Mississippi’s Certificate of Formation (Miss. Code § 79-29-201) requires the registered agent name and address (public record) and the organizer’s signature but does not require member or manager names. However, the annual report (Form F0001) does require principal officer/manager information. So the formation document is anonymous, but the annual filings are not. For more comprehensive statutory anonymity, Wyoming, New Mexico, and Delaware are stronger jurisdictions. Source: Miss. Code § 79-29-201.

Why do foreign LLCs pay $250 for the same annual report?

Mississippi’s legislature structured the foreign LLC annual report fee at $250 to incentivize domestic Mississippi formation over foreign qualification. A non-Mississippi LLC (formed in Delaware, Wyoming, etc.) that wants to operate in Mississippi must qualify as a foreign entity and pay $250 per year for its Mississippi annual report. A Mississippi-formed LLC pays $0. The differential is one of the largest in the country and explicitly designed to draw out-of-state operators to form in Mississippi rather than qualify foreign entities. Source: Miss. Code § 79-29-1003.

How fast is Mississippi LLC formation?

Online filings via Mississippi SOS Business Services Online are typically processed same-day to one business day. Mail filings take 3-5 business days plus mail transit each way. Mississippi does not advertise a paid expedited service because online processing is already fast. The state has invested in modernizing its filing infrastructure under SOS Michael Watson (in office since 2020), making online formation among the fastest in the country. Source: Mississippi SOS Business Services.

Mississippi tax structure for LLC pass-through profits

Mississippi’s individual income tax is in the middle of a multi-year reduction under HB 1668 (signed by Governor Reeves, 2022). The schedule: top rate 5% in 2023, 4.7% in 2024, 4.4% in 2025, 4% in 2026, and stays at 4% through 2028 with the possibility of further reductions if state revenue triggers are met. The bracket structure under HB 1668: 0% on the first $10,000 of taxable income, then the applicable top rate (4% in 2026) on income above $10,000. Mississippi-resident LLC members owe state income tax on their share of pass-through profits at these rates, filed via Form 80-105. Non-resident members owe Mississippi non-resident income tax on Mississippi-source LLC profits, filed via Form 80-205. Multi-member LLCs taxed as partnerships file Form 84-105 at the entity level to report Mississippi-source income. The LLC itself owes nothing at the entity level under default pass-through classification, but the member-level personal income tax is meaningful for Mississippi-resident owners. The combination of $50 LLC formation cost, $0 annual report, no franchise tax, and a 4%-and-falling personal income tax makes Mississippi one of the most cost-efficient states for both entity-level and member-level LLC ownership for Mississippi residents. Source: Mississippi Department of Revenue.

State quirk: $0 for domestic, $250 for foreign

Mississippi’s annual report fee structure is one of the most differentiated in the country: $0 for domestic Mississippi LLCs, $250 for foreign LLCs filing the same form. The legislature’s reasoning, articulated during 2010 Mississippi LLC Act revisions, was that domestic formations contribute to local economic activity, generate Mississippi income tax on members, and warrant subsidized SOS service, whereas foreign qualifications represent out-of-state economic activity passing through and should pay full administrative cost. The practical effect: small operators considering whether to form in Wyoming or qualify foreign in Mississippi vs. just forming in Mississippi often choose domestic Mississippi formation specifically to avoid the recurring $250/yr foreign fee. The differential is the largest in the country (most states charge identical or near-identical fees for domestic vs. foreign annual reports). Source: Mississippi Revised Limited Liability Company Act, Miss. Code Title 79 Chapter 29.

Common mistake in Mississippi

The most common Mississippi LLC mistake is treating the “$0 annual report” as “no annual report required.” The fee is $0 but the filing is mandatory, the report confirms continued activity, registered office, and agent information. Missing the April 15 deadline triggers administrative dissolution after 60 days, requiring reinstatement filings to restore the LLC. Mississippi SOS sends courtesy email reminders but only to the registered agent’s email on file. Calendar April 15 as a hard deadline each year, even though no money changes hands. Free does not mean optional.

A second pitfall affects non-Mississippi residents who form a Mississippi LLC to capture the cheap formation cost without realizing the foreign-qualification trap in their home state. A Mississippi-formed LLC operating in Tennessee, Louisiana, Alabama, or any other state with substantial business activity must register as a foreign LLC in that state, paying both the Mississippi annual report ($0) and the home state’s foreign qualification + annual fees. For example, a Mississippi LLC qualifying foreign in Tennessee pays the Tennessee $300 application + $300 annual report + $100 minimum franchise tax annually, totaling $700 in Tennessee plus the Mississippi $50. The cheap Mississippi formation only saves money if the operator has genuine Mississippi nexus (residency, office, or substantial activity there). Non-residents looking for the cheapest state should evaluate whether Mississippi or their home state offers better total economics; in many cases, forming domestically in the home state and skipping foreign-qualification altogether produces lower total cost than the Mississippi-plus-foreign route.

When a Mississippi LLC makes sense vs. New Mexico and other low-cost alternatives

Mississippi and New Mexico are tied at $50 over five years for total entity-level state cost, the two cheapest states in the country for LLC ownership. The choice between them depends on use case:

• Mississippi vs. New Mexico, Mississippi requires an annual report filing (free, but mandatory); New Mexico requires no annual report at all. New Mexico has stronger statutory anonymity (members not on public records, ever); Mississippi’s anonymity is formation-document-only. For pure anonymity, New Mexico wins. For active business operations with a clear paper trail, Mississippi’s annual report provides better continuity documentation.
• Mississippi vs. Wyoming, Wyoming ($400 5-year DIY) is 8x more expensive than Mississippi in absolute terms but offers significantly stronger asset-protection case law and exclusive-remedy charging-order language. For high-net-worth asset-protection structures, Wyoming wins; for routine operating businesses, Mississippi wins on cost.
• Mississippi vs. Tennessee, Tennessee ($300 filing + $300 annual + $100 minimum franchise = $1,800 5-year) is dramatically more expensive than Mississippi. Memphis/North Mississippi metro operators near the border may prefer Mississippi formation despite operating in Tennessee, though Tennessee foreign-qualification fees apply.
• Mississippi vs. Alabama, Alabama ($200 filing + $50 annual + $50 BPT minimum = $700 5-year) is dramatically more expensive than Mississippi. For Mobile/Gulf Coast operators, Mississippi is the natural cost-optimization choice.
• Mississippi vs. Louisiana, Louisiana ($100 filing + $30 annual = $250 5-year, post-franchise-tax-repeal) is competitive but more expensive than Mississippi. For New Orleans-adjacent operators, the choice often follows residency.

For Mississippi-based operators, the domestic Mississippi LLC is unbeatable on cost. For non-Mississippi operators chasing the cheapest possible LLC, the choice between Mississippi and New Mexico hinges on whether you value New Mexico’s stronger anonymity or Mississippi’s active annual-reporting paper trail. Both states produce essentially zero entity-level state cost over 5+ years.

Sources

1. Mississippi Secretary of State Business Services, last verified 2026-05-16
2. Mississippi SOS Business Services Online Portal, last verified 2026-05-16
3. Mississippi Revised Limited Liability Company Act (Title 79 Chapter 29), last verified 2026-05-16
4. Mississippi Department of Revenue, last verified 2026-05-16
5. IRS Publication 3402, Taxation of Limited Liability Companies, last verified 2026-05-16

About the author

Aissam Baidi is the founder and researcher behind llcformationcost.com. He verifies Mississippi LLC fees directly from sos.ms.gov on a quarterly cycle. Connect on LinkedIn.

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Not legal advice. Estimates based on publicly available data from each state’s Secretary of State office. Consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction.