BetterLegal vs LegalZoom Comparison

Business entity formation is a crucial element of launching a business, and because it’s often complex and tedious many entrepreneurs hire a professional to do the job right. 

Two of the leading online services to consider are BetterLegal and LegalZoom. And to help you determine which is best, and which might be best for you and your business, we have thoroughly reviewed their services by putting ourselves in the shoes of an entrepreneur. Read on to choose the one that will put your business on the highway to success. 

Though BetterLegal’s only formation package is more expensive than LegalZoom’s Economy Plan, it includes more services and is overall a better value for starting an LLC.

Features and Services Overview

BetterLegal offers one comprehensive LLC formation package and a handful of a la carte options. Their signature LLC formation service is a transparent one-time fee of $299 plus state filing fees. This plan includes many services that competitors, like LegalZoom, do not. 

BetterLegal’s formation process is simple and takes less than five minutes. The company is also known for its leading tax services provider and outstanding turnaround times. Customers of BetterLegal are provided with same-day filing services as well as excellent customer support. 

LegalZoom is an industry leader when it comes to LLC formation services. They offer three business plans, with one-time fees ranging from $79 to $349, plus state fees. Their Economy Plan is great value for what’s included, and they also have excellent customer service.

LegalZoom’s services are easy to use and offer a great customer experience. LegalZoom is more expensive than some competitors, but they do offer a wider variety of legal services and have been in business for more than 20 years. Overall, they’re a great one-stop shop for all of your business formation and legal needs.

Plans Pricing

BetterLegal only offers one LLC formation package in addition to a handful of a la carte options. Their signature formation service – or their “base plan” – costs a one-time fee of $299 plus any state filing fees.

BetterLegal’s “base” plan includes a business name availability search, the preparation and filing of your articles of organization, and an operating agreement. BetterLegal also offers a federal tax identification number. The “base” plan provides free website services, insurance evaluation, and tax analysis. You’ll also receive amendment or document research services, minute templates, an officer designation document, a banking resolution, and the option to elect S corp taxation.

The LegalZoom “base” plan costs $79 and provides a business name availability search through the state database, your business’s formation, and full customer support. It also offers a few extras, including a digital welcome packet and a business newsletter. You’ll also have access to your formation documents online at any time.

LegalZoom’s “middle” plan costs $329 and includes all the services in the “base” plan plus a founder’s kit, personalized business embosser, and membership certificates. The LegalZoom “top-tier” plan offers all of the services listed above plus expedited filing and express document shipping, making it a better value than the “middle” plan.

BetterLegal’s Plan vs LegalZoom’s Plans

Here, we summarize the offerings from both BetterLegal and LegalZoom side by side.

Customer Service

We tested the customer service experience of both services from every angle. Here’s what we found. 

BetterLegal

User Experience – What to Expect 

When you first arrive on the BetterLegal landing page, you’ll see a drop-down menu where you can select the state in which you’re filing, and then you can click the Set Up Your Business button to begin.

On the next screen, you’ll select whether or not you want to form an LLC or a corporation. Click the Form an LLC button to proceed. Next, you’ll choose whether you want to form a single or multi-member LLC. Make your selection and also make sure the appropriate state is selected from the drop down menu.

Next, you’ll be prompted to answer a series of questions to provide all the pertinent information needed to file. The questions are essentially to collect what will ultimately wind up in your articles of organization. The whole process takes about three minutes. 

You’ll also be asked if you want to use BetterLegal as your registered agent or appoint your own. 

After you answer all of the questions, you’ll move on to the payment screen. You’ll be able to take one final look at your selections before completing the process. You can also leave notes for the filing team and make changes to any optional add-ons before paying.

How is the formation process?

The formation process was simple and quick and took around three minutes, just as the website suggested. There were also informative video clips throughout the process to help explain certain elements, like what information to provide about your LLC members and whether or not your business needs to file certain tax forms. 

One of the downsides is that there’s no option to save your information as you’re filing or the ability to come back to your filing later on. Once you make it to the payment screen, clicking your browser’s back button causes you to start the process all over again. 

In Summary

Overall, the site is easy to use if you’re ready to go and just want to get it done. Otherwise, information can be difficult to find and state websites can be cumbersome to navigate. 

We appreciated the way the final page of the formation process was set up and that it clearly outlined everything that’s included in the package as well as our add-on elections. Everything was clearly presented and there was no upselling, aside from the option to choose BetterLegal as a registered agent. The website was no-nonsense and all information was transparent.

Customer Support

We tested all three forms of BetterLegal customer support. Our findings are detailed below. 

Chat support

When we tested the customer service response time through the online chat option, we received a response within a few minutes. 

The question we asked was about turnaround time for filings. The representative told us that they offer same-day filings for all formations. They also mentioned that state filing timelines may vary. The customer service agent was concise and polite and we did not encounter any upselling.

Support Rating:

Response time:

Very quick

Phone support

We called BetterLegal to ask a question about registered agent services. Our call was answered almost immediately, and the question was answered promptly. The question was whether registered agent services are included in any of the plans, and the answer was no. 

The custom service representative explained that we could choose to add the service for $10 per month or $90 per year. The customer service representative was professional and polite and made no sales pitches. 

Support Rating:

Response time:

Immediate

Email support

We asked the same question via email about registered agent services and received the same response within a few hours. Our question was answered thoroughly and politely. The person who responded made no sales pitches. 

Support Rating:

Response time:

Reasonable

LegalZoom

User Experience – What to Expect 

When you first go to the LegalZoom site, you’ll be able to explore products and pricing from the menu at the top, or you can just click “start my business” and select the business entity type you want to form.

However, it’s difficult to find the service package prices and information. They do not appear on the site menu. In fact, we had to do a Google search, “LegalZoom business formation plans” in order to get to that part of their website. 

How is the formation process?

When you start the formation process by selecting LLC as your entity type, you’re asked a series of questions about your business. Then the site automatically offers you products, such as registered agent services and the operating agreement. You can accept or decline any of the services.

One of the products offered is a total compliance service, which does not appear in their products menu. This service helps you meet all your LLC’s requirements, such as annual report filings. 

The service is free for 10 days, which is a rather short period, and then costs $280 per year. This seems expensive since you can purchase their annual report a la carte for $55 per year. 

You’re also offered tax services, including “tax prep essentials” for $99 a month and a “full-service tax and accounting plan” for $159 per month. Then you’re offered a legal protection plan, which includes legal guidance and documents, for $49 per month.

Then you’re finally presented with their packages, so you can choose the Economy, Standard, or Express Gold. Once you make your selection, you get offers for special deals from Bank of America and Earth Class Mail. 

Lastly, you get to your total cost. Note that anything that has an annual fee, such as registered agent services, is not included in this initial total, so you’ll need to be prepared to incur those charges later. 

You can pay your initial total all at once, or you can choose to make three monthly payments. Finally, if you do choose to make payments, you’ll pay a bit more due to the $2 monthly installment fee. 

In Summary

Overall, the process was very smooth. Yet it was also very much a sales process, as they offered services and partner products again and again. 

It would be nice if all their service offerings and packages were easily accessible on the site before you start the process. Still, everything was made clear during the formation process and it only took a few minutes. 

Customer Support

We tested all three forms of LegalZoom’s customer support, as detailed below. 

Chat support

When we tested the customer service response time through the online chat option, we received a response almost immediately. We asked about the cost of operating agreements, and what determines the final price since it’s listed as “from $99”. The answer was that it’s $99 for standard processing and $199 for rush processing. 

The customer service agent was quick and polite, and after the chat, we received a follow-up email almost immediately. 

Support Rating:

Response time:

Immediate

Phone support

We called LegalZoom to ask a question about registered agent services. Our call was answered in two minutes and the question was answered promptly. The question was whether registered agent services are included in any of the plans, and the answer was no. 

The customer service representative was professional and polite and made no sales pitches. 

Support Rating:

Response time:

Immediate

Email support

We asked email support what the standard filing time is vs. expedited filing. Our email was sent on a Saturday, and we received a response on Monday at about 11 a.m. The answer was polite and clear.

Support Rating:

Response time:

Reasonable

Customer Reviews

We wanted to know how real customers feel about both services, so we thoroughly explored customer reviews at the Better Business Bureau and Trust Pilot. Below we’ve summarized our findings. 

BetterLegal

Better Business Bureau

BetterLegal has an A rating from the BBB.

• Easy LLC formation process
• Cost-effective services
• Great customer service

BetterLegal has an A rating from the BBB with 5/5 stars in customer reviews. They have been an accredited BBB business since 2017. They received three complaints which were closed in the last three years and two complaints closed in the last 12 months. This is one of the best BBB ratings for LLC formation services we’ve encountered.

However, we noticed that there is only one customer review, from 2019, and with five stars. Thus, there are no negative reviews. This could mean that BetterLegal has been overzealous in deleting fake reviews – which are a real industry problem – and has also included negative reviews in its sweep. 

You can read more information on the BBB website. 

Trustpilot 

BetterLegal has a very high trust score rating on Trustpilot.

• Easy LLC formation process
• Fast turnaround times
• Great customer service

The Trustpilot score for BetterLegal is 4.9/5 stars.

The BetterLegal reviews from Trustpilot have the following range:

• Excellent 90%
• Great 9%
• Average <1%
• Poor 0%
• Bad 1%

Positive reviews highlight fast turnaround times and exceptional customer service. One customer mentioned how easy the formation process was and that they completed everything within 10 minutes. Another review specifically called attention to how well informed they felt and that BetterLegal kept them up to date throughout the entire process.

Negative reviews mentioned not receiving certain filings or an EIN number. One review called the customer service team incompetent. However, BetterLegal did make a solid attempt at clearing up any discrepancies and it seems as though at least one of the negative reviews was fabricated.

You can read reviews on the TrustPilot website. 

LegalZoom

Better Business Bureau

LegalZoom has no rating from the BBB.

• Great customer service
• Accredited
• Good response to complaints

LegalZoom has no rating from the BBB, but they are an accredited business, with 4.55/5 stars in customer reviews. They have been an accredited BBB business since 2011. They have received 903 complaints in three years, all of which have a closed status.

Many of the positive reviews for LegalZoom revolved around their exceptional customer service, such as this one: “I had an issue and was able to call the company and have it resolved within a matter of minutes.”

“LegalZoom has been our trusted agent for several years now,” said another review. “The care and coordination we’ve received allows us to run a challenging business successfully and ensure compliance remains consistent each quarter.”

Some of the negative reviews were about not receiving services as expected:

“I ordered an expedited filing mid-May. It sat, and sat, and sat while nothing was filed with the state. I had to call every day to try to move the needle on this filing and this ‘expedited filing’ is still not completed. I still do not have an EIN number and it is almost July.”

Others complained about not being able to get through to customer service by phone. Many of the negative reviews were about difficulties with cancellation.

You can read reviews on thee BBB website. 

Trustpilot 

LegalZoom has a high trust score rating on Trustpilot.

• Good handling of customer issues
• Highly professional service
• Site easy to use

The Trustpilot score for LegalZoom is 4.5/5 stars.

The LegalZoom reviews from Trustpilot have the following range:

• Excellent 77%
• Great 3%
• Average 2%
• Poor 1%
• Bad 17%

Many positive reviews were again about the great customer service and the ease of use. 

“Easy and affordable. Things got a bit chaotic on my end (auto-correct made changes I didn’t authorize & then there were licensing questions on my part) but all was handled with ease, patience and in a timely manner. I highly recommend, as this is the second time I’ve used LegalZoom and both times went very smoothly for usually stressful events (divorce, new business owner).”

“LegalZoom has helped me with several legal processes and they have always been highly professional and helpful.”

Some negative reviews were about not getting the services paid for and not being able to get a refund. One person said LegalZoom failed to form her business and she ended up going to the state herself to make the filing. 

Another complained: “I paid for the most expensive package (Express Gold) for my LLC. I am beyond disappointed with LegalZoom. Not only did they register the wrong name for my LLC – causing me more time and money – for months they have refused to send me the physical items that were included in that package. I literally have sent over 20 emails and have been on hold and called several times explaining my situation. They just send me a link to my digital documents. That is not what I’m missing and requesting. I have sent pictures and explained ad nauseam with no avail.”

You can read reviews on the TrustPilot website. 

Pros and Cons

BetterLegal

LegalZoom

Verdict

After a thorough assessment, we have determined that BetterLegal provides superior value and broader service offerings. By choosing BetterLegal, you’ll access more business services for your money and faster turnaround times. LegalZoom’s “base” formation package is less expensive, but customers also receive fewer services and support. LegalZoom is great for entrepreneurs with more time and determination to tackle the process more independently. 

Our approach

As an entrepreneurial advisory site, we take our responsibilities seriously. We understand that countless entrepreneurs, and potential entrepreneurs, rely on our judgments and insights, particularly when it comes to creating their business.

As a result, our writers do their utmost to gain a comprehensive understanding of the services offered and the actual customer experience. In this case, we:

• Examined every single page of both the BetterLegal and LegalZoom websites
• Reviewed all of their offerings, from a la carte products to packages
• Put ourselves in the customer’s shoes, creating accounts
• Communicated with customer service via chat, email and phone
• Gained a full understanding of the customer experience and service value

Thanks to this full immersion in the actual customer experience, our reviewer and team are able to provide the most complete and insightful comparison of BetterLegal and LegalZoom LLC formation services.