Delaware Registered Agent Guide (2026): Rules, Fees and the 3 Best Agents
Our Delaware answer for 2026 is Mainstay Filing ($149 a year), DE Registered Agent.org ($99 a year) and Delaware Registered Agent.ai ($99 a year), ranked in that order. A registered agent is mandatory in Delaware; the state's own yearly charges are $400 (47th of 50).
Every LLC must name a registered agent with an in-state street address. The address has to be a registered office in Delaware. An entity agent keeps a business office there that is generally open; an individual agent has to be generally present there. A virtual office or mail-forwarding service alone does not qualify.
Who can serve: The LLC itself, a Delaware resident, or a business entity formed in Delaware or authorized to do business there. Statute: 6 Del. C. § 18-104.
What Delaware charges each year
$400 every year for the Annual LLC Tax, due annual alternative-entity tax due on or before June 1; the state writes about it to your registered agent's address.
Why Mainstay Filing is first
State filings covered is worth 30% of the score, and it put Mainstay Filing ahead of DE Registered Agent.org here.
Fifty-state coverage outscored DE Registered Agent.org on our method.
Questions
Does Delaware require a registered agent?
Yes. Every LLC must name a registered agent with an in-state street address.
Who can serve as the registered agent?
The LLC itself, a Delaware resident, or a business entity formed in Delaware or authorized to do business there.
How much does a registered agent cost in Delaware?
The agents we'd use charge $99 to $149 a year.
What does the LLC pay the state each year?
$400 a year on our measure: the Annual LLC Tax ($400 every year).
Which registered agents are on this page?
Mainstay Filing ($149 a year), DE Registered Agent.org ($99 a year) and Delaware Registered Agent.ai ($99 a year), in our order.
Which registered agent would you pick?
Mainstay Filing first: a $149 yearly agent plan that you can keep if the company registers in more states. Then DE Registered Agent.org and Delaware Registered Agent.ai.