The registered agent service (also referred to as a resident agent or statutory agent service) you choose for your Virginia business is crucial to its success.
The right Virginia registered agent will make sure that your business assets are protected and that your personal information stays off the public record. They’ll also ensure that your company meets all its legal obligations with the Virginia Secretary of State.
The wrong Virginia registered agent will cost your company a lot more than just money. They charge more for their meager services than they’re worth and are careless with your business information, which could leave your business vulnerable to hackers and scams, and possibly open to personal lawsuits.
I investigated more than 60 different Virginia statutory agent services, rated the top 12, and then wrote thorough reviews about the top 3. Here are my choices for the best Virginia registered agent service.
1. Northwest Registered Agent — 9.13/10 (My Top Pick)
Northwest Registered Agent is my top pick for the best Virginia registered agent service because they offer all the services your limited liability company (LLC) needs in a registered agent at a very competitive price, while providing the best customer service in the industry.
Pros
Northwest Registered Agent covers every base you need from a registered agent service.
They provide a street address in the state of Virginia, assist in filing your Articles of Organization, accept mail, service of process, and legal documents on behalf of your company during normal business hours, and scan ALL your mail and documents (not just the legal documents, unlike most other resident agents in the state) and put them on an online portal that you can access with an online account.
They even provide one of the best LLC services in Virginia.
They also give you compliance alerts to remind you when you need to file an important document (like your annual report) to keep your LLC in good standing with the Virginia State Corporation Commission.
It’s easy to sign up for their services, and their system is easy enough to learn that everyone in the office will be able to navigate it. They have an office in every state so, using their portal, you can also sign up with them in multiple states, which is a unique feature. So, no matter which state your Virginia business expands into, Northwest Registered Agent can assist you with the growth of your business.
But it's the customer service that makes Northwest stand out.
It’s really refreshing to find a customer service team that isn’t outsourced, or more concerned about keeping call lengths to a minimum rather than actually helping its customers.
Northwest’s customer service team is based in the United States and is made up of former lawyers, entrepreneurs, and business owners. Therefore, every person on their customer service team has the experience and expertise needed to answer any question you have. And they not only answer questions about their registered agent services, but any business question you have. Their customer care team is available for contact every weekday during normal business hours.
If they don’t know the answer they will look it up and get back to you promptly. Considering the fact that every new Virginia business needs a ton of support, especially during the first year of their LLC, together with all the other advantages, it was easy to rank Northwest Registered Agent at the top.
At $125 per year (which makes them only $26 per year more than my budget choice below) it’s well worth the extra to get excellent, all-around service.
Cons
Northwest’s best feature is also their biggest downfall: oddly it’s the thoroughness of their customer service.
When you call Northwest Registered Agent’s customer service team, they do their best to provide your company with comprehensive customer service. This means that they ask a ton of questions in order to understand your problem, and they wait until they absolutely understand your problem and know the solution to it before they give you an answer or even make suggestions.
This is great when you want a quality answer and a detailed explanation, but it’s not so great when getting that answer impacts the rest of your workday. It’s a pain whenever the whole office is held up waiting for an answer to one customer service call.
Of course, this is only a small complaint against Northwest Registered Agent, and it really only comes up when you need a solution to your problem or query in a hurry.
Overall
Northwest Registered Agent is the best Virginia statutory agent service because they offer all the full-service offerings that your LLC needs, they have the best customer service team not only in the state of Virginia, but in the entire industry, their computer system is easy to use, and they provide all these features for the second-lowest price of any Virginia registered agent service on this list.
If you need a Virginia registered agent service that will provide you with excellent customer service, answer any business query you may have about your LLC, and provide your business with a great range of registered agent services, sign up for Northwest Registered Agent here.
2. Harbor Compliance — 7.92/10 (Best Budget Registered Agent)
Harbor Compliance is my second choice for the best Virginia registered agent because they provide you with all the services your business in Virginia needs in a registered agent, and they have the lowest annual fee in the state.
Pros
Harbor Compliance provides a lot of the same services as Northwest Registered Agent.
They are your business point of contact, provide your business with an office address, accept legal mail and legal documents (service of process) on behalf of your LLC during regular business hours, scan your documents and put them on a portal for you to access with an online account, and give you compliance alerts to remind you when you need to file an important document (like your annual report) and also to keep you in compliance with the Virginia State Corporation Commission.
It’s easy to get through their sign-up process, and you can sign up for their registered agent service in multiple states simply through their portal.
Their standout feature is their price. They charge a mere $99 per year for their full-service offerings. This is the cheapest Virginia registered agent service on the market.
Cons
There’s one drawback to Harbor Compliance that’s not obvious when reading about their Virginia statutory agent services. It is simply this: while they are good at everything they do, they aren’t great at anything they do.
They provide your business with a good range of full-service options, but there are no premium services.
And their customer support is adequate, but they don’t provide any of the business support available with Northwest Registered Agent.
Overall
Harbor Compliance is a good option for those looking to save some money. They offer the same general full-service options that Northwest Registered Agent does, and they do it for $99 per year.
If your priority is price and not support or service, then you can read more about Harbor Compliance here.
3. LegalZoom — 6.59/10 (Best Premium Registered Agent)
LegalZoom is the best and most well-known premium Virginia registered agent service on my list, and I looked at a lot of really unsatisfactory premium services.
They’re a commercial registered agent that will provide full-service registered agent services that any LLC in the state of Virginia could benefit from. They will become your business’s point of contact and provide a physical address, receive important mail, and accept legal documents and service of process during business hours.
They scan your documents and allow access to them via an online portal, and give you compliance notifications to let you know when you need to file an important form (like your annual reports).
A great but costly bonus is that they provide your business in Virginia with up to $1 million in identity theft protection and cover any state fees you incur from deciding to change your Virginia registered agent service to theirs.
For all this, they charge a whopping $299 per year for their commercial registered agent services. However, their registered agent services get quite neglected and overlooked, since registered agent services aren’t the only service they offer.
If you’re looking for a Virginia registered agent service with a big name that can provide you with premium services and cost really isn’t an issue for you, you can get more information about LegalZoom here.
4. ZenBusiness
ZenBusiness is an LLC formation service that offers everything you want from a Virginia registered agent service, but for some reason, has a costly basic registered agent service.
The Pro Package is $199 per state, per year and includes everything included by Northwest Registered Agent, with one notable exception—exceptional customer support.
This is probably because their primary focus is on LLC formation services, rather than registered agent services, so they haven’t fully optimized their offering. But, regardless of the reason, they’re still more expensive than Northwest Registered Agent and don’t offer the same level of support available.
If you want to read a full breakdown of their products and services, check out my ZenBusiness review.
5. IncFile
IncFile is a registered agent in Virginia that offers very minimal services. They provide your LLC with a business address and they will accept mail and service of process on behalf of your business.
They give you one year of free registered agent services, but just like ZenBusiness, they charge a lot after that year is up. Their fee is $119 per year in subsequent years.
You can read about IncFile here.
6. Rocket Lawyer
RocketLawyer is basically a cheap knockoff of LegalZoom that’s not that much cheaper. Their agent services aren’t the business’s primary focus, and only make up a small portion of their services. A lot of their offers are online legal services.
They give your business in Virginia a street address and accept legal correspondence and service of process on behalf of your limited liability company (LLC). However, they charge $149 per year for these bare-bones services and less-than-adequate customer service.
If you want to read more about their services, check out my Rocket Lawyer review.
7. SunDoc Filings
SunDoc Filings is yet another registered agent in the state of Virginia that provides few services but charges high prices. Like any registered agent must, they provide your Virginia business with a business address in the state and accept mail and service of process for your LLC. However, they have a $159 per year price tag.
So, if you want an expensive registered agent service that provides you with the bare minimum in terms of service, you can read about SunDoc Filings here.
8. InCorp
Reviewing InCorp was tricky. They provide the services that any registered agent service, like a Virginia business address and accepting mail and service of process for your company. They charge $99 per year, which is the same price my budget choice charges.
The problem is their online system is really hard to use, and their customer service isn’t good enough to support such a frustrating system.
If the price looks good to you, I’d recommend you check out Harbor Compliance instead.
9. Swyft Filings
Swyft Filings offers a lot of the same services that my top three agent services provide, and those that any Virginia registered agent must have.
They give your Virginia business a business address in the state and offer compliance alerts to notify you of upcoming filing deadlines for each form you need to file for your company, but they charge $149 per year.
You can get the same services, as well as better customer service, from Northwest Registered Agent for $25 per year less.
If you want a full breakdown of their products and services, check out my Swyft Filings review.
10. CSC Global
CSC Global is a “premium” registered agent service in Virginia that offers very little in terms of any actual premium services.
They provide your Virginia business with a business address in the state of Virginia, receive service of process on your behalf, along with some other basic services.
The only premium service they provide is that they cover any filing fee your company incurs when you change to their services. However, they charge $299 per year. For far less than that you could hire Northwest Registered Agent, pay the filing fee your company got charged for making the change, still pay less than $299, AND receive excellent customer service!
If there’s some reason you want to pay $299 for less-than-great services, you can learn more about CSC Global here.
11. Registered Agents Inc.
Registered Agents Inc. offers many of the same services provided by Northwest Registered Agent. They provide you with a business address in Virginia, accept service of process on behalf of your business, and they’ll even give you compliance alerts to remind you of upcoming filing deadlines for each form your company needs to file.
Their fee is the drawback, however. They charge $200 per year, while Northwest Registered Agent charges only $125 and provides better service.
12. Jumpstart Filings
Jumpstart Filings offers both registered agent and LLC formation services. Their Virginia registered agent services are pretty minimal, and you’ll get little more than a physical street address in the state.
There are a couple of major drawbacks to Jumpstart Filings, however. First, they charge $150 per year. Second, they don’t offer a free year of registered agent service when you sign up for their LLC formation services. So, if you’re looking for an LLC formation service along with free registered agent services for a year, it’s better to go with ZenBusiness.
Registered Agent Review Summary
Northwest Registered Agent is my top choice for best Virginia registered agent service because they offer a ton of great services beyond those that a registered agent must provide (like a physical street address in Virginia), they charge $125 per year which makes them the second cheapest registered agent service in Virginia on the list, and their customer service is the best in the industry.
Their US-based customer service team is made up of former lawyers, business owners, and entrepreneurs who have years of business experience. They’re very patient with customers and offer comprehensive service. What’s more, you can ask them questions about any aspect of your business, not just their registered agent services, and they do their best to answer them.
They have a simple sign-up process, and their computer system is easy to navigate. And they offer compliance notifications to let you know about upcoming filing deadlines.
If you want the best registered agent in Virginia has to offer, or if you want to change your registered agent service in order to obtain better services, sign up with Northwest Registered Agent today.
Best Registered Agent Review Methodology
Here is the reasoning behind the ranking of the best registered agent in the state Virginia.
Why You Should Trust Me
I have spent more time interacting with and researching the Virginia registered agent industry than almost anyone else in this industry.
I began researching resident agents for my two businesses (a cafe and a health website). When I closed down those businesses eventually, I began to look for a new project. I quickly learned by talking to friends in the cafe industry, as well as those in the business industry at large, that most people don’t know as much about the Virginia registered agent industry as I do, and they don’t have the time to do research that I undertook.
That turned into my new business venture and I started a website so that I could give this advice to people on the internet, like you.
Selection of the Best Registered Agent
I used a four-stage investigative process to whittle down a list of over 60 registered agent services for your Virginia LLC. Here’s how I did it:
Stage 1: Reviews
The first thing I did was check out reviews that customers had left online. I looked at various sites, like TrustPilot, Facebook, and the Better Business Bureau, along with any other site that any resident had left reviews about a resident agent service in Virginia. Truthfully, there was no way I could read every last review.
Instead, I read reviews that were more than a couple of paragraphs long and provided ample information about the type of service that each resident agent provided to a person or company.
There’s a lot you can learn from online reviews. For instance, I was able to determine pretty quickly which services were outright scams and which ones used deceptive pricing practices. (More on that later.)
Stage 2: Website Analysis
After reading online reviews, I did a thorough investigation of each agent’s business website.
Some of the things I looked at were the services they provided (do they just offer a business address, or do they provide a variety of services like compliance filing alerts?), their company history, their location (they had to have an address in Virginia), how many methods they listed to contact their customer service team (phone, email, chat), and any awards they’d won and displayed on their website.
This gave me an idea about how they presented themselves and some of the services they advertised.
Stage 3: Speaking with Real Customers
While online reviews are a good place to start, they don’t give you the full picture. Most people won’t even leave a review online unless they’ve either had an overwhelmingly positive or extremely negative experience with a company.
So I reached out to customers who had come to my website and obtained a Virginia registered agent service based on my recommendations, as well as those who already had resident agents before coming to my site, but were looking for a change. I asked them about the service they received from their agents and how satisfied they were.
This definitely gave me a better idea of what working with each agent was like and how they interacted with customers, regardless of what their website said.
Stage 4: Speaking with Their Sales Teams
The next thing I did was call each company’s sales team. I gathered up all the negative feedback, comments, and issues I could find and then asked them direct questions about them. Their answers were pretty telling.
Some of them said things like that they’d taken the feedback and used it in order to fix the problem, so this sort of thing doesn’t happen again. Others blamed the customer for the issue, indicated that they were “crazy” and that I shouldn’t listen to them.
The reactions of the sales team let me know what interacting with each company is like, and whether the company uses feedback to change and grow, or just ignores it.
Rating Factors
After the four-stage investigative process, I was left with 12 companies. Here are the factors I used in order to place each Virginia registered agent service.
Factor 1: Offerings
The first factor I considered is arguably the most important: the services each agent provides. If an agent doesn’t offer the services your company needs, then everything else is pretty irrelevant because they’re of no real use to you.
I looked at things like whether the service simply offers a business address in Virginia, if they forward your service of process documents or actually scan them and put them on an online portal, if they just give you a calendar with compliance filing deadlines on it or if they actually give you compliance filing alerts every time a new deadline approaches, if they actually offer identity theft protection or just give you a vague promise to keep your information safe, and if they offer a cheap LLC service or possibly even the best LLC service.
The company with the best services won top place.
Factor 2: Value
Value for money is an important factor to consider when you’re researching any service. However, prices for registered agents in Virginia vary WIDELY. In fact, it can be hard for the average person to determine what a good price for a registered agent actually is because of this.
I found that there were three different pricing tiers that were offered by resident agents in Virginia: budget, full-service, and premium.
Budget services usually charge around $39–$59 per year, full-service agents run between $99–$129 per year, and premium services start at $299.
Budget services initially seem like a great idea until you figure out that they’re using deceptive pricing practices. The services they provide for $39–$59 per year are so minimal that you really won’t get by on them. And in order to get the services you’d expect (such as compliance filing alerts), you’ll have to pay additional fees that can cost more than what some premium services charge.
Because of this, you’ll notice that I don’t put any budget services on my list. I don’t approve of these deceptive pricing practices and feel they’re unethical.
Factor 3: Ease of Sign-up
It can be a pretty big turnoff to find a Virginia registered agent service that offers all the services you need at a reasonable price, only to discover that its sign-up process is overly complicated and takes forever.
So, those agents whose sign-up processes are automated, simple, and quick earned higher positions on my list than those who required mountains of paperwork to be sent to a random PO Box address along with the blood of your firstborn child.
Factor 4: Ease of Use
If a Virginia registered agent’s computer system isn’t navigable, it can be a real pain. So for this reason, I incorporated this factor into my rating system.
The agents whose computer systems were easy-to-use and simple to navigate took higher positions on my list than those whose systems would potentially cause an office-wide headache because of the overly complicated navigation system.
Factor 5: Customer Service
The last factor I considered was customer service because no matter how easy a computer system is to use, you’ll eventually have a question. Plus, your Virginia registered agent service can quite literally mean the difference between avoiding legal problems and causing them, so their customer service is important.
The registered agent in Virginia with the best customer service easily earned the top position on my list, while those whose customer service was lacking earned lower positions.
The Best Virginia Registered Agent Results Summary
After my four-stage investigation process, my list of Virginia registered agent services was whittled down from over 60 to 12. My five-factor rating system helped me determine that Northwest Registered Agent is the best registered agent in Virginia.
Best Overall Registered Agent — Northwest Registered Agent (9.13/10)
Northwest Registered Agent is my first pick for the best Virginia registered agent service because they offer a wide range of services at a reasonable price AND they have the best customer service not only in the state but in the industry.
They only charge $125 per year for their services, which is the second-best price on my list. They assist in filing your Articles of Organization and give your company a business address in the state, they scan ALL your mail and service of process and other legal documents and then put them on an online portal for you to access, and they offer compliance alerts.
They also offer registered agent services in all 50 states, so as your business grows, Northwest Registered Agent can grow with it. Their customer care department is available for contact every weekday during normal business hours
With more than 3,000 positive Northwest Registered Agent reviews, you can be confident that my experience was not a fluke.
If you want the very best Virginia registered agent service you can get for your company, you should sign up for Northwest Registered Agent here.
Or click here to find out the best LLC Services in Virginia.
Best Budget Registered Agent — Harbor Compliance (7.92/10)
Harbor Compliance offers a variety of services for the best price on the list.
They provide a business address, compliance alerts, and scan and forward your mail. And they do all of this for only $99 per year.
Their customer service team isn’t as helpful or patient as Northwest’s and they’ll only answer questions about your Virginia registered agent service, whereas Northwest’s customer service team will answer any business question you may have.
Don't just take it from me. There are also hundreds of positive Harbor Compliance reviews online from other happy customers.
If you’re willing to sacrifice great services and customer support in order to save $26 per year, then you can get more information about Harbor Compliance here.
Best Premium Registered Agent — LegalZoom (6.59/10)
If you're looking for a registered agent service that offers a little more, LegalZoom is the best of an unremarkable group of premium options.
They provide everything included by Harbor Compliance (while also lacking the customer support of Northwest Registered Agent), including a physical address in Virginia, mail uploading and forwarding (including service of process), an online portal, and compliance alerts, but the feature that lands them on the premium list is their identity theft insurance.
When you sign with LegalZoom, you get $1 million worth of identity theft protection included in their service.
The downside is that to access this insurance, you have to pay $299 per state, per year for their base package—more than double the cost of Northwest Registered Agent and triple the cost Harbor Compliance.
In fact, you can purchase that level of identity theft insurance for less than the difference, making them not a great option.
So, if you desperately want identity theft insurance with your Virginia registered agent service or are already using LegalZoom for other services, they're worth considering. But if you're not, there are better options on my list.
In Conclusion
The choice you make when appointing a registered agent in Virginia for your company is a vital one. Your agent can protect your business assets, keep your personal information off the public record, and make sure your business is in good standing with the Virginia State Corporation Commission.
I investigated over 60 different agents, then rated the best 12 and picked the top 3 from there.
My investigative process led me to conclude that Northwest Registered Agent is the best registered agent in Virginia.
You’ll get a variety of full-service offerings from Northwest, along with excellent customer service from a team of experienced professionals. Their computer system is easy to navigate and it’s easy to sign up for registered agent service in multiple states from the same portal.
If you want industry-leading customer support and Virginia registered agent services, then check out Northwest Registered Agent here.