The most comprehensive free business formation resource on the internet. From entity structure to first revenue — real steps, real tools, zero fluff. Written for founders, not lawyers.
Every founder needs these four steps. We have a guide for each one.
LLC, S-Corp, or sole prop — the decision that affects taxes, liability, and how you pay yourself for the next decade.
Start with LLC Formation →Free, 15 minutes, directly from the IRS. Skip the paid services charging $79 for something the government does for $0.
Get Your EIN Free →Separate your money on day one. Keeps you out of piercing-the-corporate-veil territory and makes taxes 10x easier.
Pick a Bank →MSAs, SOWs, NDAs, contractor agreements. Plain English, free templates, zero lawyer fees until you're past $50K deals.
Contracts 101 →// Interactive Tool
Answer three questions. Get a personalized recommendation for your business structure — with costs, steps, and exactly what to file.
1. What type of business are you starting?
Choose the closest match. This affects liability and tax implications.
// Pillar 1: Formation
Six entity types, compared head-to-head with real costs, real tax implications, and honest recommendations. No upselling a $500 filing service for something you can do in 20 minutes.
LLC
Limited Liability Company
The most flexible structure for most businesses. Pass-through taxation, liability protection, and minimal compliance requirements. The default recommendation for 80% of new businesses.
S-Corp
S Corporation
An LLC or Corp that elects S-Corp tax treatment. Lets you split income into salary + distributions to save on self-employment tax. Only makes sense above ~$50K net profit.
C-Corp
C Corporation
Required if you're raising venture capital. Allows unlimited shareholders and stock classes. Subject to double taxation — corporate tax + personal tax on dividends. The big leagues.
Sole Prop
Sole Proprietorship
No filing required — you become one by default when you earn money. Zero liability protection. Best only for testing an idea before you formalize. Don't stay here long.
Partnership
General / Limited Partnership
Two or more people sharing ownership. General partners have unlimited liability. Limited partnerships add passive investors. Common in real estate and professional services.
Nonprofit
501(c)(3) / 501(c)(6)
Tax-exempt organization for charitable, educational, or social missions. Donations are tax-deductible for donors. Requires IRS approval, a board of directors, and strict compliance.
Real filing fees, real annual costs, and the actual pros and cons of each state. Updated February 2026.
| State | Filing Fee | Annual Fee | State Tax | Privacy | Speed | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wyoming Popular | $100 | $60/yr | None | ✅ High | 1–3 days | Best overall for privacy + cost. No state income tax. |
| Delaware Popular | $90 | $300/yr | None (out-of-state) | ✅ High | Same day ($) | Gold standard for C-Corps seeking VC. Chancery Court expertise. |
| New Mexico Cheap | $50 | $0 | 4.8% GRT | ✅ High | 1–2 days | Cheapest state to form. No annual report. No publication. |
| Nevada Privacy | $425 | $350/yr | None | ✅ High | 1–3 days | No state income tax. Strong asset protection. Higher fees. |
| Texas | $300 | $0 (franchise report) | Franchise tax | 🔶 Medium | 2–5 days | No annual fee if under $2.47M revenue. Large economy. |
| Florida | $125 | $138.75/yr | None | 🔶 Medium | 2–5 days | No state income tax. Reasonable fees. Huge market. |
| Montana Cheap | $70 | $20/yr | 6.75% | 🔶 Medium | 3–5 days | Very low fees. Popular for vehicle registrations (no sales tax). |
| Colorado | $50 | $10/yr | 4.4% | 🔶 Medium | 1–3 days | Incredibly cheap annual maintenance. Fast online filing. |
| South Dakota Privacy | $150 | $50/yr | None | ✅ High | 1–3 days | No income tax. Strong trust laws. Asset protection. |
| Your Home State | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Varies | Usually the best choice. No foreign registration needed. |
🏗️ Complete Formation Checklist
Interactive. Check off each step as you complete it. This is the same process we used to form The News Bakery LLC — every step in order.
// Pillar 2: Funding
There are eight real ways to fund a business. Most "funding guides" only cover three. We cover all of them — with actual requirements, real dollar amounts, and honest verdicts about who each one is actually for.
🔧 Bootstrapping
Self-FundedFund your business with revenue, savings, and sweat equity. The most common path and the one that gives you maximum control. No investors, no debt, no permission needed.
Best For
🏦 SBA Loans
DebtGovernment-backed loans through approved lenders. Lower interest rates than conventional loans. The SBA guarantees 75–85% of the loan, so banks take less risk and you get better terms.
Requirements
👼 Angel Investors
EquityHigh-net-worth individuals who invest their own money in early-stage companies. Typically invest $25K–$500K. Often provide mentorship and connections in addition to capital.
What They Want
🚀 Venture Capital
EquityProfessional investment firms that deploy funds from institutional investors (pensions, endowments, family offices). Series A+ funding for companies targeting massive scale.
Requirements
🎁 Grants
Free MoneyNon-repayable funds from government agencies, foundations, and corporations. Highly competitive but zero dilution and zero debt. Federal, state, and private options available.
Where to Look
👥 Crowdfunding
MixedRaise from the public through platforms like Kickstarter (rewards), Republic (equity), or GoFundMe (donation). Doubles as marketing — you validate demand while you raise.
Success Factors
💳 Business Credit Lines
DebtRevolving credit from banks or fintech lenders. Draw funds as needed, pay interest only on what you use. Builds business credit history for future financing.
Options
🤝 Revenue-Based Financing
Non-DilutiveGet capital upfront, repay as a percentage of monthly revenue. No equity given up, no fixed monthly payment. Payments scale with your income — less when slow, more when busy.
Providers
| Method | Speed | Equity? | Debt? | Min Revenue | Best Stage | Difficulty |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bootstrapping | Instant | ✗ | ✗ | $0 | Any | ⭐ |
| SBA Loans | 30–90 days | ✗ | ✓ | Varies | 2+ years | ⭐⭐⭐ |
| Angel Investment | 1–6 months | ✓ | ✗ | Traction | Pre-seed | ⭐⭐⭐ |
| Venture Capital | 3–9 months | ✓ | ✗ | $1M+ ARR | Series A+ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| Grants | 1–12 months | ✗ | ✗ | $0 | Any | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| Crowdfunding | 30–60 days | Maybe | ✗ | $0 | Pre-launch | ⭐⭐⭐ |
| Credit Lines | 1–7 days | ✗ | ✓ | $5K+/mo | Operating | ⭐⭐ |
| Revenue Financing | 1–2 weeks | ✗ | Sort of | $10K+/mo | Growth | ⭐⭐ |
// Pillar 3: Execution
The daily, weekly, and quarterly operations that determine whether your business survives Year 1. Hiring, money, compliance, and when to automate with AI (that's where BakePrint takes over).
Hiring & Team Building
W-2 vs. 1099 classification, offer letters, onboarding processes, and the tax implications of each. Get this wrong and the IRS will teach you why it matters.
W-2 employees — payroll tax, benefits, compliance
1099 contractors — scope limits, tax forms, agreements
Onboarding SOPs — documentation, training, culture
Remote team setup — tools, comms, time zones
Financial Management
Bookkeeping from Day 1, quarterly estimated taxes, cash flow forecasting, and when to bring in a CPA vs. doing it yourself. The math your business depends on.
Chart of accounts — organize income and expenses
Quarterly estimated taxes — dates, amounts, safe harbor
Profit & loss statements — read and act on them
Cash flow forecasting — survive the slow months
Compliance & Legal
Annual reports, franchise taxes, business license renewals, and the compliance deadlines that will cost you penalties if you miss them. State-specific requirements covered.
Annual reports — deadlines by state
Franchise tax filings — TX, CA, DE, others
Business license renewals — city and state
BOI reporting — FinCEN requirements
Insurance & Protection
Which policies you actually need vs. what agents try to sell you. General liability, professional liability, cyber insurance, and workers' comp — sorted by business type.
General liability — $30–$60/mo, required for most
Professional liability (E&O) — if you give advice
Cyber insurance — if you handle customer data
Workers' comp — required with employees
Growth & Marketing
Your first 100 customers. Organic vs. paid, content marketing fundamentals, and the marketing stack that actually works for bootstrapped businesses.
SEO fundamentals — get found for free
Content marketing — authority through publishing
Paid acquisition — when and where to spend
Referral systems — your cheapest growth channel
Operations & Automation
Build SOPs, document processes, then automate everything you can. This is where BakePrint's 170+ AI workflow blueprints become your operations team.
SOP creation — document before you delegate
Project management — systems, not heroics
AI automation — the BakePrint handoff
Tech stack — tools that scale with you
Every deadline that matters. Miss one and you'll pay penalties. Bookmark this.
// Recommended Stack
Not a directory of 200 options. The specific tools we'd use if we were starting a business today — organized by function, with real costs. Every tool in every BizBake guide comes from this list.
💰 Banking & Finance
Mercury
Business banking — checking, savings, cards
Free
QuickBooks
Accounting, invoicing, expense tracking
$30/mo
Wave
Free invoicing and accounting
Free
Relay
Business banking with profit-first buckets
Free
Gusto
Payroll, benefits, HR compliance
$40/mo + $6/person
📄 Legal & Formation
Northwest Registered Agent
Registered agent + LLC filing
$39/yr + state fees
LegalZoom
Legal docs, trademark filing
$0–$299 + fees
Clerky
C-Corp formation docs for startups
$799 one-time
Next Insurance
Business insurance quotes in minutes
From $25/mo
🌐 Website & Online Presence
Cloudflare
DNS, CDN, security, hosting
Free – $20/mo
Carrd
Simple one-page sites
Free – $19/yr
Shopify
E-commerce — physical or digital products
$39/mo
Beehiiv
Newsletter platform with growth tools
Free – $99/mo
📈 Marketing & Growth
Ahrefs
SEO research, keyword tracking, backlinks
$99/mo
Buffer
Social media scheduling and analytics
Free – $6/channel/mo
ConvertKit
Email marketing for creators
Free – $29/mo
Google Search Console
Free SEO monitoring from Google
Free
⚙️ Operations & Productivity
// Library
Every guide follows the same formula: plain language, real steps, honest costs, and links to the tools you need. New guides every week.
Tax implications, liability protection, self-employment tax savings, and the actual break-even point where an S-Corp election starts saving you money. With calculator.
Your EIN is your business's Social Security number. Here's exactly how to apply on IRS.gov, what to enter in each field, and what to do with it once you have it.
7(a), 504, and Microloans explained. Credit score requirements, collateral expectations, and a walkthrough of the actual application packet lenders want to see.
How to fund a business with revenue, savings, and strategic frugality. Real examples, monthly burn rate templates, and the mindset shift that makes bootstrapping work.
The IRS 20-factor test, the ABC test (for California), and the actual consequences of misclassification. With a decision flowchart and sample contractor agreements.
The safe harbor rule, how to calculate quarterly payments, where to pay, and the spreadsheet template we use to track it all. Stop guessing, start calculating.
The four contracts every new business needs. Plain-English explainer of MSAs, SOWs, NDAs, and contractor agreements — which clauses matter and when to DIY vs hire a lawyer.
Forget 40-page business plans nobody reads. Our one-page template covers value prop, market, revenue model, costs, and milestones — everything a lender or partner needs.
General liability, professional liability, cyber, workers' comp, commercial property — which policies your specific business type needs and comparison quotes from 5 carriers.
// The Handoff
Every BizBake guide ends where BakePrint begins. We handle the formation, funding, and strategy. BakePrint gives you the AI-powered workflows to execute — 170+ blueprints covering every operational problem you'll face.
// The News Bakery Ecosystem
Each property serves a different need — and they all feed each other.
The News Bakery
thenewsbakery.com
100% FreeAI-powered news aggregation with editorially neutral headlines. Real stories, appropriate indifference.
Visit →BakePrint
bakeprint.com
100% Free170+ AI workflow blueprints. Describe your problem, get a step-by-step solution with tools and costs.
Visit →BakeBuilt
bakebuilt.com
Interactive ToolsInteractive AI business tools — ROI calculators, AI recommenders, revenue estimators, budget planners. Run the numbers.
Visit →Keaton Books
keatonbooks.com
FictionThe Maplewood Trilogy by Alex Keaton. Dark, cinematic fiction for readers who like their mysteries with teeth.
Read →Etsy Shop
etsy.com/shop/TheNewsBakery
Instant DownloadsPrintables, merch, and digital extras. Works offline, works on every device.
Shop →The Newsletter
thenewsbakery.beehiiv.com
100% FreeSix editions a week. Real AI stories for real businesses. BizBake guides and BakePrint workflows delivered to your inbox.
Subscribe →Native Apps
iOS & Android
$4.99 eachFive health journaling apps on the App Store and Google Play. No ads, no subscription, data stays on your device.
Explore →