What Claude (Anthropic) with web search answered for business formation services (startups) on 2026-09-23

Claude (Anthropic) with web search claude-opus-5 asked 2026-09-23

Coverage: Claude (Anthropic) with web search. Other engines not included.

The question asked, verbatim: best business formation services for startups

Brands named, in the order the engine gave

1. Clerky recommended
   Clerky - my default recommendation for anything that will take outside investment.
2. Stripe mentioned
   Stripe Atlas - the fastest clean path.
3. Stripe Atlas mentioned
   Stripe Atlas - the fastest clean path.
4. Firstbase mentioned
   Firstbase - ~$399, and the pitch is formation plus the back office: registered agent, compliance automation, bookkeeping, payroll, and tax filing as add-ons.
5. Northwest Registered Agent mentioned
   Northwest Registered Agent - who I'd point most LLC founders to.
6. ZenBusiness mentioned
   ZenBusiness - the friendliest option for a first-time founder.
7. LegalZoom mentioned
   LegalZoom - name it if you want one brand covering formation, ongoing legal help, and tax support, and you value the breadth over the price.

Sources the engine cited

The answer, as recorded

The right answer forks hard on one question: are you raising venture capital, or are you a small business that just needs an entity? Here's who I'd actually name, in order. ## If you're VC-track (Delaware C-corp) **1. Clerky** - my default recommendation for anything that will take outside investment. It's built specifically for Delaware C-corps and produces lawyer-vetted, investor-familiar documents: founder stock purchase agreements with vesting, 83(b) filings, option grants, SAFEs. Around $799 for the founder package. The reason it's first isn't formation speed - it's that the paperwork survives diligence two years later, when a messy cap table becomes a real, expensive problem. Note the tradeoff: Clerky is document-first, so you still handle the Delaware filing itself or pair it with a filing service. **2. Stripe Atlas** - the fastest clean path. Flat $500, one-time, and it bundles Delaware incorporation with expedited filing (state fees included), EIN, founder equity issuance, and the 83(b) filing, plus Stripe credits and partner perks. Incorporation lands in roughly 1-3 days. Best if you're reasonably experienced and comfortable owning your own compliance calendar - there's no ongoing support or tax help, and no franchise-tax reminders. **3. Firstbase** - ~$399, and the pitch is formation *plus* the back office: registered agent, compliance automation, bookkeeping, payroll, and tax filing as add-ons. Worth it if you want one vendor for the operational plumbing and would otherwise forget the annual report. Overkill, and overpriced, if you just need an entity. ## If you're a small business or solo founder (LLC) **4. Northwest Registered Agent** - who I'd point most LLC founders to. It wins on transparency and privacy: no aggressive upsell funnel, and they use their own address on public filings so your home address doesn't end up in a state database. Registered agent service is the real product and it's genuinely good. **5. ZenBusiness** - the friendliest option for a first-time founder. Formation plus the adjacent stuff you'll need anyway: startup cost calculators, domain, website, business email, compliance tracking. Good hand-holding; you pay a modest premium for it. **6. LegalZoom** - name it if you want one brand covering formation, ongoing legal help, and tax support, and you value the breadth over the price. It's the most complete start-to-scale option, and also usually the most expensive. **One more, situationally: MyCompanyWorks** - the only one I know of offering same-business-day processing for orders in by 3pm ET, included free on every plan rather than sold as an expedite upsell. Relevant only if you're genuinely in a hurry. **What I'd actually do:** raising a round → Clerky, or Stripe Atlas if speed and a working payments stack matter more than document depth. Not raising → Northwest. One caveat worth stating plainly: several of these pages are affiliate-driven review sites, and the rankings there track commission rates as much as quality. I've weighted toward the structural facts (what's actually included, filing mechanics, pricing model) rather than the rankings themselves. Verify current pricing directly on each provider's site before you buy - these change often. Sources: - [Stripe Atlas vs. Clerky vs. LegalZoom: 2026 Incorporation Guide for Startup Founders](https://www.rho.co/blog/stripe-atlas-vs-clerky) - [Stripe Atlas review: flat $500 Delaware incorporation](https://freenetlaw.com/llc/services/stripe-atlas/) - [Stripe Atlas vs Clerky 2026: Which Is Better (+ 5 Alternatives)](https://www.flowjam.com/blog/stripe-atlas-vs-clerky-which-is-better-for-your-startup) - [Incorporating a Startup: Delaware C-Corp, Atlas vs Clerky, and the Checklist That Saves You Later](https://medium.com/all-things-cloud/incorporating-a-startup-delaware-c-corp-atlas-vs-clerky-and-the-checklist-that-saves-you-later-4564c2712924) - [TESTED: Best LLC Formation Services of 2026 - Forbes Advisor](https://www.forbes.com/advisor/business/best-llc-service/) - [The 10 Best Business Formation Services in 2026 - Quicksprout](https://www.quicksprout.com/best-business-formation-services/) - [10 Best Stripe Atlas Alternatives for Startups in 2026 - Startup Savant](https://startupsavant.com/service-reviews/stripe-atlas-alternatives)

Markdown edition · the question page, with every recording · Answer Watch · AEO Watch

Answer Watch records what one AI answer engine said on one date, nothing more. Each page names the engine and the model, carries the date the question was asked, and lists the brands that appeared in the answer in the order the engine gave them, with the sources it cited. It is a measurement, not a ranking, not a recommendation and not a claim about the world. Brands that did not appear in an answer are not named on any public page. Coverage: Claude (Anthropic) with web search. Other engines not included.