Stripe
Stripe Atlas
Score
of 10rubric 2026.1
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01
Who this is for
The summary is editorial. The two lists beneath it are read from this product's verified attributes against the rest of its table, and change when a figure does.
Forms Delaware entities only, and Delaware charges $400 a year against Wyoming's $60 — which is most of why it ranks last on a pure cost comparison. That comparison does not capture what the $500 also buys: founder equity issuance, the 83(b) election filing, and $2,500 in Stripe credits. Priced for a startup raising money, not for a holding company.
Who this suits
Founders who want the setup cost to end after year one. The formation fee is charged once rather than renewed annually.
Calculated from attributes verified 16 Sep 2026
Who it doesn’t
Founders who want the cheapest company to maintain. At $500 a year it is the most expensive here to keep standing, and ongoing cost is weighted above setup cost in this vertical's rubric because it repeats.
Calculated from attributes verified 16 Sep 2026Founders who want a state other than Delaware. This provider forms Delaware entities only, and Delaware's own annual charge is the largest state fee in this table.
Calculated from attributes verified 16 Sep 2026
02
The score, taken apart
Every criterion, its published weight, what it earned and what that contributed.
| Criterion | Weight | Score | Contribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year-one total cost | 40% | 5.00 | 2.00 |
| Annual cost thereafter | 60% | 2.22 | 1.33 |
| Total | 100% | 3.3 |
Basic tier. Weights are published on the methodology page; a change to any of them is a rubric version bump, not a silent edit.
03
Every stored figure
One row per attribute, each with the source it was read from and the date it was read. Every row has its own anchor, so a single figure can be linked to directly — for example /formation/stripe-atlas#service-fee-usd.
| Attribute | Value | Source | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| Formation fee | $500 | stripe.com | Verified against the source 16 Sep 2026 |
| Fee recurs annually | One-time | stripe.com | Verified against the source 16 Sep 2026 |
| registered agentA person or company with a physical street address in the state of formation, designated to receive legal notices and state correspondence for the company. Every US state requires one and a PO box does not qualify, which is why founders living outside the US almost always pay a service for it. | $0 | stripe.com | Verified against the source 16 Sep 2026 |
| registered agentA person or company with a physical street address in the state of formation, designated to receive legal notices and state correspondence for the company. Every US state requires one and a PO box does not qualify, which is why founders living outside the US almost always pay a service for it. | $100/yr | stripe.com | Verified against the source 16 Sep 2026 |
| EINEmployer Identification Number — the federal tax identification number the IRS issues to a business. A US bank account, a federal return and payroll all require one. Applicants without a Social Security Number cannot use the online application and must apply by fax or post instead. | Included | stripe.com | Verified against the source 16 Sep 2026 |
| States available | Delaware only | stripe.com | Verified against the source 16 Sep 2026 |
| Articles of OrganizationThe document filed with a state to bring an LLC into existence, naming the company, its registered agent and its address. Some states call it a Certificate of Formation. The state's filing fee is charged for processing it. | $0 | stripe.com | Verified against the source 16 Sep 2026 |
| franchise taxA charge some states levy for the privilege of keeping an entity registered there, owed whether or not the company trades or makes a profit. States calculate it differently — some charge a flat annual amount, others base it on assets held in the state. | $400 | corp.delaware.gov | Verified against the source 16 Sep 2026 |
04
Sources
Every figure checked on 16 Sep 2026.
Formation fee · Fee recurs annually · Registered agent, year one · Registered agent renewal · EIN included · States available · State filing fee
State annual fee
05
Use this record
The figures above are meant to be quoted and checked, not just read.
Cite this pageplain text or BibTeX
Plain text
Points Architect. "Stripe Atlas: verified product record." Rubric 2026.1. Verified 16 Sep 2026. https://pointsarchitect.com/formation/stripe-atlas
BibTeX
@misc{pointsarchitect-formation-stripe-atlas,
title = {Stripe Atlas: verified product record},
author = {{Points Architect}},
year = {2026},
howpublished = {\url{https://pointsarchitect.com/formation/stripe-atlas}},
note = {Verified 16 Sep 2026; rubric 2026.1}
}Canonical URL https://pointsarchitect.com/formation/stripe-atlas. Every row in the attribute table has its own anchor, so a single fee can be cited without citing the whole record.
Figures on this page are dated individually to the day each was checked against its source. Nothing here is an estimate, and the score is calculated from the attributes above rather than entered by hand. See methodology.