Process Score

We may earn a commission if you buy through some of the links on this site.

Not legal advice. Confirm the live agent line on the Corporations and Charities Filing System before you file or treat a published street as current. That search is Washington’s public lookup. The office that keeps it is the Washington Secretary of State, Corporations and Charities Division.

State · Washington

Washington files the agent’s consent, and will not take a P.O. Box or a PMB as the street

A registered agent is the person or company who can be handed a lawsuit for the business. It is not a mailbox. A registered agent is also called a statutory agent, or an agent for service of process. Handing over those court papers is called service of process. The office that keeps Washington’s public list is the Secretary of State. Washington files the agent’s prior consent on that list. A P.O. Box or a private mailbox is not the street. A commercial registered agent is anyone who files a commercial listing: not a ten-company count. Each year a Washington profit company also files an annual report. That report is due the last day of the month of formation and costs $70. That filing is not the registered-agent job. This page is the Washington rule and the dated prices. It does not reprint vendor cards from another state.

Updated September 10, 2026 · Methodology · Prices retrieved September 10, 2026 from official pages

A registered agent is not a virtual mailbox. We do not score mailbox suites, virtual offices, or Google Business Profile eligibility here. If you need scans of catalogs, that is a different product on a different site.

What Washington actually requires

A registered agent is the person or company who can be handed a lawsuit. Service of process means handing over those papers. RCW 23.95.405 says a domestic or registered foreign entity shall keep an agent here. RCW 23.95.105 includes a commercial agent and a noncommercial agent. A commercial agent is listed under RCW 23.95.420. That listing is not a ten-company count.

RCW 23.95.415 requires prior consent in a record filed with the Secretary of State. A notarized statement removes a name filed without consent. Otherwise the filing names a person and a street, or an office title and an address. A street is a place a person can walk up to. A P.O. Box is a mailbox at the post office. RCW 23.95.410 requires that street, plus a mailing line only if it differs. A P.O. Box or a private mailbox cannot be the street.

RCW 23.95.430 needs the new agent’s consent. Inside 180 days of the due date, the annual report can carry the change. The official table prices the change at no fee. RCW 23.95.255 asks for the agent’s street. A different line is itself a statement of change. The report is due the last day of the formation month. A profit company pays $70, or $95 if delinquent. Filing it is not taking the lawsuit.

RCW 23.95.455 says the agent forwards the papers and keeps the filing current. RCW 23.95.450 starts with that agent. Next is mail to the principal office, then the person in charge of a regular place of business. The secretary of state is last, at $50. A resignation takes effect on the 31st day, or sooner if a new agent is named.

Related guide: Can I be my own registered agent? A person with a Washington street may serve if prior written consent is on file with the Secretary of State.

Related guide: What is a registered agent for an LLC? The job is taking a lawsuit at a Washington street. The $70 report is a different paper.

Related guide: How much does a registered agent cost? The commercial listing is $30. A change of agent on the official table is no fee.

Related guide: How to change a registered agent on an LLC File the consent with the statement of change, or use the annual report inside 180 days.

Related guide: What is a commercial registered agent? Washington lists one by a filing. The street on that listing is a physical Washington address.

Related guide: Service of process: what it means for an LLC Service of process means handing over the papers. If the agent cannot be served, mail comes before the Secretary of State.

Related guide: What is a registered agent address? The agent must be at a physical Washington street during business hours. A P.O. Box or private mailbox is not that street.

Related guide: Best registered agent service A commercial agent is whoever filed the listing. Consent on file is what puts the name on the list.

Related guide: What is a certificate of good standing? The certificate is a different paper from the agent filing. This section does not print a certificate price.

The office page says the agent must be there during business hours. The statute does not print a clock. Someone has to be at a Washington street to accept hand-delivered papers. A software login is not that street.

Cited prices, retrieved September 10, 2026

We print what the company’s official registered-agent page said on the retrieval date. No company publishes a different Washington registered-agent price from the national card, except where we note a Washington-page renewal line. The page does not publish a separate renewal price.

Vendor Year 1 Year 2 Letters Link
Northwest Registered Agent $125/year standalone; first year free only if you form the entity through Northwest $125/year (same price; $100/year per state if you have five or more states) B+ / B / B Official page
Bizee Free first year when you form through Bizee; standalone registered agent $149/year Official pages we retrieved say $149/year after the free first year (or $149 from day one if you buy standalone) C+ / B- / B Official page
LegalZoom $249/year on the official registered-agent overview (first-time customers) Official footnote: auto-renews at the purchase rate until you cancel; “The renewal rate is subject to change.” C / B- / B- LegalZoom
ZenBusiness $99 + WA state fees for the first year (standalone); national card says $99 + state fees $199/year renewal on the official national pages; national pages say the rate is subject to change C / B- / B- ZenBusiness

A change of agent is a separate Secretary of State filing. We cite the official fee table, retrieved September 10, 2026, not company blogs. Change of registered agent or office is No Fee. Resignation of registered agent is No Fee. The commercial-registered-agent listing is $30 on the Corporations and Charities Filing System tools page. The profit annual report is still $70. It is still not the registered-agent job. Expedited service on that table is $100. Same-day service is $150. Those dollars are office dollars.

Who publishes a Washington street

A city is not a registered office. We print only the streets the companies publish for registered-agent use. The pages we read do not publish the rest. Confirm the live name and street on the Corporations and Charities Filing System before you file. Headquarters is not the registered office. The Secretary of State’s Olympia contacts are not vendor suites.

If you are your own agent, the street on the public record is often your home. If you hire a commercial registered agent, the agent line is that organization’s name. When the agent is on the commercial list, the street lives on that listing. Northwest names downtown Spokane, ZIP 99201, Spokane County, and no street. LegalZoom’s Washington article names Bellevue and no street. Bizee and ZenBusiness publish no Washington street. We label every city vendor-claimed. We have not been to those offices. Use the Corporations and Charities Filing System.

In-state office and the PMB ban

Washington wants an in-state person or a listed commercial agent, a physical registered office, and the agent located at that office during business hours. A P.O. Box or a PMB is not that street. The agent’s prior consent is filed with the Secretary of State. Change the agent on a statement of change at no fee, or on the $70 annual report inside the 180-day window, or on a $10 amended annual report outside it. A new agent’s consent goes on that filing or is attached to it. Resignation is effective on the 31st day, or sooner if a new agent is filed. The profit annual report is due the last day of the formation month and costs $70. Washington does not post a Florida-style 10–noon / 2–4 clock, and it does not run a Nevada-style ten-company commercial-agent register on the text we could read. A commercial agent here is a person who filed the $30 listing. Northwest claims downtown Spokane, ZIP 99201, and no street. LegalZoom’s Washington article names Bellevue and no street. ZenBusiness’s Washington product page names no ZenBusiness street. The Olympia lines on that product page are Secretary of State contacts. Bizee names no Washington street. Process Score has not been to those offices. We do not treat a company 9-to-5 line as RCW 23.95.415.

Service of process, not marketing mail

We grade scan-and-forward of service of process and official notices:

Home-address privacy

A commercial listed agent is how most Washington owners keep a home off the agent line. The Secretary of State still publishes whatever other addresses you put on a formation filing or an annual report. Privacy of the agent line is not privacy of every field. Confirm the live line on the Corporations and Charities Filing System.

Scorecards

Northwest Registered Agent

Commercial registered agent
Year-1 / year-2 price
B+
National $125/year, same in year 2. Five-or-more-states is $100/year per state. No Washington-only price.
SOS street and presence
B
They name downtown Spokane, WA 99201, Spokane County. No street on the product or office-locations pages. Confirm the Corporations and Charities Filing System. The page does not publish one.
Process and privacy
B
In-office same-day scan of documents they receive. Grade the court-paper path, not the mail-forwarding add-on.

Year 1: $125/year standalone; first year free only if you form the entity through Northwest

Year 2: $125/year (same price; $100/year per state if you have five or more states)

Retrieved: 2026-09-10

Official page

Bizee

Commercial registered agent
Year-1 / year-2 price
C+
Year 1 can be $0 with formation on the official card. Year 2 is $149. No Washington-only price.
SOS street and presence
B-
No Washington registered-agent street on the product pages. Houston HQ is not a Washington registered-agent street. Confirm the Corporations and Charities Filing System.
Process and privacy
B
Published court-paper path: notify, scan to portal, FedEx the papers. Not a mailbox.

Year 1: Free first year when you form through Bizee; standalone registered agent $149/year

Year 2: Official pages we retrieved say $149/year after the free first year (or $149 from day one if you buy standalone)

Retrieved: 2026-09-10

Official page

LegalZoom

Commercial registered agent
Year-1 / year-2 price
C
Official $249/year. Year 2 is “purchase rate,” subject to change. The page does not publish $299.
SOS street and presence
B-
The Washington article names Bellevue as the registered office. No street published. Confirm the Corporations and Charities Filing System.
Process and privacy
B-
Published court-paper scan, email, and postcard. Junk mail is filtered. That is not the product we grade.

Year 1: $249/year on the official registered-agent overview (first-time customers)

Year 2: Official footnote: auto-renews at the purchase rate until you cancel; “The renewal rate is subject to change.”

Retrieved: 2026-09-10

LegalZoom

ZenBusiness

Commercial registered agent
Year-1 / year-2 price
C
Year 1 $99 + state fees is a first-year deal. Year 2 is $199 on the national card. Read the renewal line.
SOS street and presence
B-
Washington product page publishes no ZenBusiness street or city. The Olympia lines are Secretary of State contacts. Confirm the Corporations and Charities Filing System. The page does not publish a suite.
Process and privacy
B-
Scan, dashboard, email; overnight for urgent legal notices. Not a mailbox. Their national product currently excludes PLLCs and nonprofits. That is ZenBusiness’s exclusion, not a Washington statute.

Year 1: $99 + WA state fees for the first year (standalone); national card says $99 + state fees

Year 2: $199/year renewal on the official national pages; national pages say the rate is subject to change

Retrieved: 2026-09-10

ZenBusiness

What this page does not do

Choosing among being the agent yourself, asking a lawyer, or hiring a commercial agent: DIY vs lawyer vs commercial. California’s scorecard is a different statute: California scorecard. Texas keeps the written consent with the company: Texas scorecard. Florida files the acceptance and posts a 10–noon / 2–4 clock: Florida scorecard. Delaware bans a virtual-only agent and sets the commercial bar above 50: Delaware scorecard. New York starts with the Secretary of State already on the agent line: New York scorecard. Nevada makes a commercial agent register at ten companies: Nevada scorecard. Wyoming bans UPS stores and virtual addresses as the registered office: Wyoming scorecard. Arizona makes the statutory-agent appointment wait on a signed acceptance: Arizona scorecard. Illinois gives you 60 days after your agent resigns, then you are not in good standing: Illinois scorecard. Ohio cancels the articles if you miss the 30-day statutory-agent notice: Ohio scorecard. Georgia wants the registered office at the same street as the agent: Georgia scorecard. Pennsylvania files a registered office, not a registered agent: Pennsylvania scorecard. New Jersey wants a street for your registered agent and will not take a P.O. Box alone: New Jersey scorecard. Colorado will not take a commercial mailbox or a P.O. Box as the registered-agent street: Colorado scorecard. North Carolina’s LLC annual report is $200 paper or $203 online by April 15. That filing is not the registered-agent job: North Carolina scorecard. Virginia’s LLC pays a $50 annual registration fee and files no annual report: Virginia scorecard.

Sources for this page

  1. RCW 23.95.405 (Washington State Legislature; retrieved September 10, 2026), a domestic entity and a registered foreign entity shall designate and maintain a registered agent in this state
  2. RCW 23.95.105 (retrieved September 10, 2026), registered agent means an agent authorized to receive service of any process, notice, or demand; commercial registered agent means a person listed under RCW 23.95.420; noncommercial registered agent is a person that is not a commercial registered agent
  3. RCW 23.95.410 (retrieved September 10, 2026), a record that must state an address must state a street address in this state, and a mailing address in this state if different
  4. RCW 23.95.415 (retrieved September 10, 2026), name the commercial registered agent, or a noncommercial agent with an address, or an office title plus an address; prior consent in a record delivered to the secretary of state and filed with or as part of the first appointing record; a notarized statement removes a name appointed without consent immediately
  5. RCW 23.95.420 (retrieved September 10, 2026), commercial-registered-agent listing statement; in the business of serving as a commercial registered agent in this state; Washington place of business where process may be delivered. RCW 23.95.425, termination takes effect at 12:01 a.m. on the 31st day after delivery for filing
  6. RCW 23.95.430 (retrieved September 10, 2026), statement of change; new agent’s consent in a record, on the statement or attached to it
  7. RCW 23.95.445 (retrieved September 10, 2026), resignation takes effect on the earlier of the 31st day after filing, or the designation of a new registered agent
  8. RCW 23.95.450 (retrieved September 10, 2026), service on the registered agent; if there is no agent, or the agent cannot be served, registered or certified mail to the principal office on the most recent annual report; then the individual in charge of a regular place of business; then the secretary of state. Service on a commercial registered agent may be in other forms the listing says the agent will accept. RCW 23.95.455, the agent’s duties are to forward process, give the required notices, and keep the filed information current
  9. RCW 23.95.255 (retrieved September 10, 2026; includes 2026 c 80 s 4), initial report within 120 days; annual report states the registered-agent street and mailing addresses; a different agent name or address on the report is a statement of change; failure to receive the office’s notice does not excuse the report
  10. Washington Secretary of State, Registered Agents (retrieved September 10, 2026), physical address in Washington State; P.O. Boxes or PMBs prohibited; signed and dated consent to serve; contact email; commercial or noncommercial type; registered office is where the agent must be located during business hours; change the agent on the annual report inside the 180-day window, or on an amended annual report or statement of change outside it; resignation effective 31 days after the filing is placed on record
  11. Washington Secretary of State, Annual Reports and File an Annual Report (Multiple Entity Types) Online (retrieved September 10, 2026), due the last day of the month of formation or registration; file up to 180 days early; profit entities including LLCs $70; delinquent $95; courtesy notice by mail and email 60 days before expiration; WAC 434-112-045 requires an email for the registered-agent and principal-office fields
  12. Washington Secretary of State, Fee Schedules & Priority Services (retrieved September 10, 2026), LLC change of registered agent or office, No Fee; resignation of registered agent, No Fee; annual report $70; annual report with delinquency fee $95; initial or amended annual report $10; expedited service $100; same-day service $150; mailing Washington Secretary of State, Corporations and Charities Division, P.O. Box 40234, Olympia, WA 98504-0234; corps@sos.wa.gov; 360-725-0377
  13. Washington Secretary of State, Corporations & Charities Filing System Tools & Resources (retrieved September 10, 2026), commercial-registered-agent listing statement filing fee $30
  14. Washington Secretary of State, Service of Process / Summons and Complaint (retrieved September 10, 2026), service on the secretary of state after the statutory paths, $50 per business entity and/or address; not available online; not available for same-day in-person service
  15. Corporations and Charities Filing System (retrieved September 10, 2026), live company and registered-agent lookup at ccfs.sos.wa.gov
  16. Northwest Registered Agent, official registered-agent page, Washington product page, and office locations (retrieved September 10, 2026), $125/year; first year free only with formation; $100/year per state at five or more states; FAQ names on-site scans from a downtown Spokane, WA office and no street; office-locations list Spokane, WA 99201, Spokane County, and says they leave the street off this list; Washington page claims regular business hours, 9 AM to 5 PM: that clock is on the company's page, not in the statute; same-day local scans claimed
  17. Bizee, official registered-agent page and contact (retrieved September 10, 2026), free year 1 with formation on the official card; standalone $149/year; year 2 $149/year; support Monday–Friday 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. CST; no Washington registered-agent street; /llc/washington-registered-agent returned 404; Houston contact HQ is not a Washington registered-agent street
  18. LegalZoom, official registered-agent overview (retrieved September 10, 2026), $249/year; auto-renews at the purchase rate, subject to change; no Washington street on the official overview; Washington registered-agent article updated November 24, 2025, retrieved the same day, no LegalZoom price; Bellevue named as the registered office, no street; the article’s $20 online change fee and $50 expedite do not match the official no-fee change and $100 expedite
  19. ZenBusiness, official registered-agent page and Washington registered agent (retrieved September 10, 2026; Washington product page last updated August 27, 2025), $99 + state fees year 1; $199 renewal on the national card; Washington product page publishes no ZenBusiness street or city; product page shows P.O. Box 40220, Olympia, WA 98504-0220 and 416 Sid Snyder Ave SW, Olympia, WA 98501, which are Secretary of State contacts, not a ZenBusiness registered office; the official fee-table footer we retrieved prints P.O. Box 40234; national product currently excludes PLLCs and nonprofits

Also setting up payroll in Washington? Payroll Score covers the first paycheck there.