I’ve tested the 13 best registered agent services in Wisconsin. Here’s my review.

I couldn’t find anyone (that I trusted) to give me a recommendation for a Wisconsin registered agent service, so I formed my own plan to find the best registered agent in Wisconsin.

After endless Google searches for “Wisconsin registered agent,” I decided to personally sign up for 13 Wisconsin registered agent services with 13 fake LLCs so I could compare them myself.

If your business needs a Wisconsin registered agent, but you don’t know where to look, keep reading.

The Best Registered Agent Service: Northwest Registered Agent

Positives:

• Easy sign-up process
• Mail scanning, forwarding, and uploading
• Alerts for important upcoming compliance deadlines
• $125 per state per year
• Corporate Guides who can answer your small business questions

Negatives:

• No dedicated account manager

During my search for the best Wisconsin registered agent, I compared websites, customer service teams, prices, and a range of registered agent services to come to a decision. I found Northwest Registered Agent to be the best registered agent in Wisconsin.

Here’s why: 

• They have a registered office in all 50 states.
• They provide an address to post on public record.
• They will receive, upload, and forward ALL my mail.
• They provide an online account where I can view all my important documents (like service of process).
• They cost only $125. 
• They have a simple sign-up system.
• They notify me about ALL compliance dates I need to meet to stay in good standing with the Wisconsin Secretary of State and the Department of Financial Institutions.

Not every Wisconsin registered agent, also called a statutory agent or resident agent, offered this list of services. Actually, it was rare for a Wisconsin registered agent to offer half of this list, much less all of it.

So I was suspicious when I found Northwest Registered Agent. A Wisconsin registered agent that was affordable AND offered every single thing I was looking for? Had to be a bust.

To test for weaknesses, I targeted the department that most Wisconsin registered agent services slacked on: customer support. Most Wisconsin registered agent services could give me a registered office to keep the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions off my back. But none could cover every single feature I wanted AND have good customer service.

One call was enough to prove me wrong. The customer service agent who picked up my call was unlike any other I’d encountered among Wisconsin registered agent services. She listened as I threw problem after problem at her. And then she gave me helpful advice!

I was shocked. She gave me advice outside of Wisconsin registered agent services. She was giving me small business advice.

How, you ask? Well, every member of Northwest Registered Agent’s customer service team has experience in a business-related field. They’ve had real-life experience outside of Wisconsin registered agent services that enables them to hand out expert business guidance.

So other than offering all the features I wanted from a Wisconsin registered agent service, Northwest Registered Agent provided exceptional customer service.

If you need a Wisconsin registered agent service with specialized guidance, visit their website at Northwest Registered Agent.

Best Budget Option: Harbor Compliance

Positives:

• Simple online system
• Fast and prompt service
• All the basics
• Only $99*
• Dedicated account manager

Negatives:

• No small business advice

Harbor Compliance is the best value option for a Wisconsin registered agent.

They will give your business in Wisconsin a name and address because you must have a physical business address on file and you won’t want to use your own because they post it on public record. They’ll also accept and process all mail meant for your limited liability company (LLC).

Like Northwest Registered Agent, they have a compliance alert system that’ll keep you on top of paperwork with the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions. The average registered agent in Wisconsin doesn’t offer that up front.

Their best selling point is their price. Harbor Compliance is the cheapest Wisconsin registered agent I could find.

If your business needs a budget-friendly Wisconsin registered agent, head over to Harbor Compliance.

*Prices listed are per state, per year and do not include state fees.

FORMATING NOTE: SEPARATOR

My Process

Finding the best Wisconsin registered agent on the market put my research skills, determination, and judgment to the test.

My Start

Sometimes in life, you just have to go with the flow. The store doesn’t have your favorite ice cream in stock? Pick another flavor. It’s supposed to rain during your family picnic? Bring some umbrellas.

I do not go with the flow. I actively resist the flow. Who made the flow, anyway? No, I like what I like and stick with it.

As a business owner, having a sense of control is important to me. I’m the one in charge, so if something goes wrong, it’s on me. If something goes right, it’s also on me.

Being in control means I need to make big decisions. In my personal life, that means picking a new car or planning dinner. For my company, that means figuring out where funds are going.

So you can imagine how hard it is for me to trust others when I’ve always been in charge. That’s why I have to find every piece of information possible before I make a decision, whether it’s buying a car or making a major move for my company.

Thanks to my trust issues, I turn to myself and my closest friends when it comes to making big business decisions. When it came time to pick a Wisconsin registered agent service for my new LLC, I was baffled by the lack of knowledge among my friends. 

Whether it’s an LLC or a foreign corporation, many of my friends have experience owning their own businesses. As a matter of fact, I have my own experience with LLC formation. You can look into my top picks for LLC formation services in Wisconsin here. I thought my experienced friends would have tips about finding a registered agent service, which is a bit different from LLC formation services, so I reached out to the business owners among them for recommendations.

But my friends didn’t have any in-depth knowledge about registered agents, after all, much less the best registered agent service in Wisconsin. Most knew a registered agent’s address was important for paperwork and mail, but nothing beyond that. I was starting out with nothing to go off of.

When I tried a simple Google search for “Wisconsin registered agent service,” the amount of advertisements and websites was overwhelming. A mountain of registered agent jargon loomed over me—scary names like the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions—and I had no idea where to start.

So I made a plan. First, I’d find as much information as possible on what a registered agent service should be doing for a business. Then, I’d cross any Wisconsin registered agent service that didn’t offer everything I was looking for off my list and rate them from there.

There’s just one problem: I ended up with 13 Wisconsin registered agent services that could do all or most of what I was looking for. Would online reviews be enough to compare them by?

Maybe for some people, but not for me. I made a fake LLC for each registered agent and signed up with those 13 options so I could compare each statutory agent for myself and experience their strengths and weaknesses firsthand.

My Criteria

Remember when I talked about what Wisconsin registered agents should be doing? For me, this included a range of registered agent services geared toward fulfilling your legal obligations and keeping your business in good standing with the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions. Here’s the full range:

• Providing a physical street address in Wisconsin to list on formation documents, annual reports, and the public record
• Receiving and uploading important legal documents (like service of process) to your online portal
• Accepting and forwarding all mail sent to your limited liability company during normal business hours
• Serving as a point of contact for the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions and other legal emissaries
• Staying available during regular business hours to receive service of process
• Sending compliance alerts about important deadlines (e.g. annual report reminders, court dates, etc.)

Now that we’re all on the same page about what registered agents would ideally offer, I can move onto my first rule: no upsells. The best registered agent in Wisconsin wouldn’t need to hide fees in the fine print for you to discover after you’ve already signed up. They should include all the services I’ve listed and not market any of them as “add-ons.”

Another quality I looked for was having at least 10 years in business. I know this doesn’t ensure that the registered agent will keep your business entity in good standing with the state of Wisconsin, but it doesn’t hurt.

A registered agent service is also constantly handling your legal documents, mail, and personal information. Mishandling any of this paperwork with the Department of Financial Institutions could jeopardize your business in Wisconsin. I’d rather entrust the well-being of my business to an experienced registered agent service than one that is still prone to rookie mistakes.

Other than those, I rated each registered agent service by how intuitive their online setup was. Spending hours trying to figure out the steps to an online sign-up process is a waste of time and mental energy, which your business in Wisconsin certainly can’t spare, so any registered agent service with a complicated sign-up process was out of the running for the best registered agent in Wisconsin.

As far as websites, in my search I eliminated any registered agent in Wisconsin with a sketchy website. Whatever registered agent service ended up handling my personal data would NOT have scammy pop-ups on their website. Others were confusing and clunky. The ideal registered agent service would have a usable platform that wouldn’t waste my time.

My Journey

When I started out investigating every Wisconsin registered agent service that came up on my Google search, I was lost. 

The sheer number of results was enough to demoralize me, not to mention the thousands of online reviews to sift through. That’s why abiding by my criteria was essential.

My first rule knocked out quite a few Wisconsin registered agent services. Every registered agent service that tried to hide essential services in the fine print and advertise them as add-ons was out. I got really good at reading the fine print.

The 10-year rule also eliminated quite a few options. I’d find a Wisconsin registered agent service that looked promising and then I noticed how new they were to the registered agent world. 

Sure, they could probably give me a business address and receive documents on behalf of my business, but they don’t know the ins and outs of being a registered agent service. I don’t want my business entity to be their learning experience.

Other Wisconsin registered agents had clunky websites that gave me a headache trying to navigate. Some had outdated sign-up processes that compounded that headache. One Wisconsin registered agent service required that I “quickly” fax over documents to sign up with them. No thanks. I don’t even have a fax machine. Who does?

At the end of the day, I had 13 registered agent service options on my list.

Here’s what I found.

My Results

After personally experiencing each Wisconsin registered agent service listed below, I’ve rated them in order of my favorite agent to not-my-favorite agent:

My Favorite Registered Agent Service: Northwest Registered Agent

I recommend Northwest Registered Agent because they provide all the services I looked for in a registered agent in Wisconsin while outdoing every other registered agent service with their customer support.

My Experience

Northwest Registered Agent has got this whole registered agent service gig down to a tee.

To satisfy requirements from the Wisconsin Secretary of State, your business must have a physical address in Wisconsin. Northwest Registered Agent will provide a registered office so your Wisconsin business will have a name and address in the state to keep on file. This way you don’t have to put your personal name and address on public record and risk your privacy.

The registered office is also available during normal business hours to serve as a point of contact and agent for service for important legal correspondence, like service of process.

Another crucial role of a Wisconsin registered agent service is receiving mail on behalf of your business. With Northwest Registered Agent, every piece of mail sent to my new physical address in Wisconsin was forwarded to me. The registered office was available to receive and forward my mail in a timely manner, so I didn’t worry about my business entity missing important documents.

Other than receiving documents on behalf of my business, they also scanned and uploaded important legal documents to my online portal, which I have access to 24/7. The portal is great for easily accessing service of process and other sensitive paperwork.

Northwest Registered Agent’s compliance deadline alert system was a pleasant surprise. Keeping track of all the annual paperwork your business needs to file with the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions is stressful. Their compliance calendar sent reminders about those annual due dates, keeping you in good standing with the Wisconsin Secretary of State.

But that’s not why Northwest Registered Agent locked in the #1 spot. Their customer service team, known as Corporate Guides, stole the show.

Corporate Guides don’t just answer questions about your physical address or the business hours for your registered office. No, they can address questions and offer advice for your general business needs, not just questions about your registered agent service.

How are they qualified to hand out small business advice? I was skeptical at first, too. But when I learned that every Corporate Guide has real-life experience in fields like accounting, entrepreneurship, sales, and more, I was satisfied.

I could tell their professional experience came into play when I followed the advice they gave me. It got to the point where I decided to keep them on speed dial when my LLC had a problem I hadn’t encountered before. The Corporate Guides were there to help me troubleshoot and push my LLC to succeed.

My Recommendation 

Northwest Registered Agent earned my recommendation because they check off all the boxes a Wisconsin registered agent must to keep your LLC in good standing with the Wisconsin Secretary of State AND they offer small business advice.

Compared to the rest of the registered agent service market, Northwest Registered Agent’s prices are affordable. They take care of all the legal obligations for your business in Wisconsin, from serving as a point of contact during normal business hours to providing a physical street address in the state of Wisconsin to keep on public record.

But their biggest appeal is their Corporate Guides. When it comes to the small business advice they offer, Northwest Registered Agent is an invaluable asset to your LLC or business entity.

If you need a Wisconsin registered agent service that goes above and beyond handling service of process, visit Northwest Registered Agent.

My Budget Pick: Harbor Compliance

Harbor Compliance is another standout Wisconsin registered agent service, rising above the other registered agents for their price (the lowest I could find) and their efficiency.

My Experience

Harbor Compliance doesn’t invest in bells and whistles like other, more “premium” registered agents do. 

They complete all the basics a Wisconsin registered agent service should, like providing a physical address in Wisconsin where your business will receive regular mail and important legal documents (e.g. service of process.) 

Like Northwest Registered Agent, their registered office is available during normal business hours and will upload your legal documents to the online portal. They also have a compliance deadline alert system so you’ll never forget an annual report deadline.

A Wisconsin registered agent service doesn’t need to issue a dedicated account manager but Harbor Compliance does anyway. The dedicated account manager is there to walk you through the steps following the sign-up process.

They’re available to answer questions relevant to registered agent services, in case you have concerns about service of process or what to file with the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions. But they do NOT offer advice out of the registered agent context. No small business advice.

Another important point is that you get what you’re paying for when you Harbor Compliance as your registered agent. You’re getting the lowest price possible because they cut off all the excess. That leaves you with a registered agent service that gets the job done but doesn’t necessarily go above and beyond.

Another Wisconsin registered agent service might offer “extras” and “premium” services like identity theft protection. Not Harbor Compliance.

They won’t go the extra mile during a customer support call, but they will receive documents on behalf of your business, provide a street address, and otherwise keep your business entity in the clear. That’s a trade-off that’s worth it if your business is tight on cash.

My Recommendation

Harbor Compliance met all the criteria I looked for in a Wisconsin registered agent service for a price no other registered agent could beat.

Unlike other registered agents that slacked on their online platform or overcharged, Harbor Compliance covers all the basics and is the most affordable option for a Wisconsin registered agent service.

If your business could use a budget-friendly Wisconsin registered agent, check out Harbor Compliance.

The Other Registered Agent Services

Not every registered agent could be a winner. These are the decent registered agents that I tested out but weren’t my favorites.

Rapid Registered Agent—A few fun features

Rapid Registered Agent is another run-of-the-mill registered agent service in Wisconsin.

The most unique feature they had was auto-filling paperwork.

I know paperwork is a headache (especially with the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions,) but I don’t think it warrants $21 more than Harbor Compliance. 

Rocket Lawyer—Great for online legal services

Rocket Lawyer acts as a Wisconsin registered agent AND a source of online legal services.

From online legal counseling to legal documents, Rocket Lawyer’s got you covered. They’ll provide a registered office that’s available during normal business hours, too, but the legal services set them apart.

At $149, I didn’t put them at the top of my list because I was going for value. Plus my limited liability company (LLC) had no need for additional legal services.

Team ‘Nothing Special’

Now for the benchwarmers. These Wisconsin registered agents are lumped together because they each have features that balance out to make them mediocre.

The registered agent services in this group include: SunDoc Filings ($159), Jumpstart Filings ($150), Swyft Filings ($159), Registered Agents Inc. ($200), IncFile ($119), ZenBusiness ($199), and InCorp ($99).

Some of these fail to receive service of process, have a clunky website, or neglect to provide compliance alert systems to remind you about annual report deadlines. They didn’t check off the boxes like my top two registered agent picks did.

Team ‘Big Brand’

Speaking of value, if you value fancy logos and polished emails in a Wisconsin registered agent, Team “Big Brand” might be for you. CSC Global ($299) and LegalZoom ($299) are the only registered agent services on this list.

They’ll accept service of process and provide a street address to file with the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions, just like most other Wisconsin registered agents. But they do offer some “premium” services, like $1,000,000 identity theft protection or covering your filing fee.

But they’re double or triple the price of other Wisconsin registered agents I investigated, so I couldn’t call either one the best registered agent in Wisconsin.

Wrapping It All Up 

Once I realized that nobody I trusted could give me a recommendation for a Wisconsin registered agent service, I decided to conduct my own search for the best registered agent in Wisconsin.

I started out with limited knowledge about what a Wisconsin registered agent should be doing. In my first round of research, I figured out that they should receive service of process, provide a registered office, and be available to receive documents during normal business hours, at the bare minimum. From there, I compared each Wisconsin registered agent to my list of “wants.”

After months of comparing every Wisconsin registered agent I could find, I recommend Northwest Registered Agent to any business in Wisconsin in need of a registered agent.

Northwest Registered Agent checks off all the boxes for a Wisconsin registered agent. They provide a business address in the state of Wisconsin you can keep on file with the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions, send compliance deadline alerts, accept service of process, and are available during regular business hours to accept and forward your mail.

Northwest Registered Agent will keep your business in good standing with the Wisconsin Secretary of State by reminding you to file your annual report and stay on top of legal documents. They’re trustworthy enough to handle your personal information and sensitive paperwork (like service of process).

But supplying a registered office wasn’t enough to put them at #1. The Corporate Guides propelled Northwest Registered Agent to the top. 

Creating a limited liability company is stressful. You must have a physical address in Wisconsin that can accept all your mail to satisfy the Secretary of State and after that there’s endless paperwork to be accountable for. Securing a registered agent’s name and address is one among many responsibilities a business owner juggles.

The complicated world of small business is why the Corporate Guides’ advice was so helpful. Drawing from their experience in marketing, accounting, law, business ownership, and other business-related fields, the Corporate Guides were there to answer all my questions and give helpful advice.

Thanks to my experience with them, I recommend Northwest Registered Agent to any business in need of a Wisconsin registered agent.

If you need a quality Wisconsin registered agent, look into Northwest Registered Agent today.