File.Business vs Northwest Registered Agent.
Northwest is the privacy-first registered agent with real humans on the phone. File.Business is a full compliance workspace. On raw dollars Northwest is cheaper; the honest question is whether you want an agent or an operating system.
NWPick Northwest Registered Agent for
- The privacy standard
- Real humans, no scripts
- Simple, honest pricing of their own
FBPick File.Business for
- An agent is a mailbox; this is an operating system
- The free tier they do not have
- Filings priced like a menu
- One workspace for a portfolio
Every line, both columns, real numbers.
No checkmark theater. Where Northwest Registered Agent is stronger, the right column says so.
| Feature | File.Business | Northwest Registered Agent |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Compliance workspace + filings + agent | Registered agent + formation, done well |
| Formation | $0 service fee + state fee | $39 + state fee, same-day |
| Registered Agent | $149/yr flat | Free yr1 with formation, then $125/yr |
| Privacy posture | Business address options, no data resale | The category benchmark: their address everywhere |
| Compliance platform | Calendar, filings, vault, BosAI, team seats | Renewal reminders; no platform |
| Annual report filing | $129 + state fee, AutoFile $99/yr | You file, they remind |
| Free tier | Free workspace forever | None |
| Support | Email + chat | Corporate Guides, human phone support |
| Mail handling | Virtual mailbox $149/yr add-on | 5 documents scanned, more on paid mail plans |
| Multi-entity | Portfolio + Enterprise volume tiers | Per-entity pricing, no shared workspace |
| 3-year cost, agent-only path | $149 + $149 + $149 = $447 | $39 + $125 + $125 = $289 |
| 3-year cost, full-platform path | $985 with Business OS | No equivalent product |
Northwest Registered Agent pricing verified August 11, 2026 from their public pricing page and current independent reviews. Prices change; check theirs before you decide. Spot an outdated number? Tell us and we fix it.
Three years, both columns, all-in.
- Business OS $249/yr: calendar, filings, vault, BosAI
- LLC $0 service fee, agent free yr1
- Agent $149 times 2 after year 1
- $39 formation, agent free year 1
- $125/yr agent after that
- Annual reports and deadlines stay your job
This is the honest one: if all you need is a great registered agent and privacy, Northwest is excellent and cheaper, and we say so. The File.Business column buys a different thing: the platform that watches 51 jurisdictions, files for you, and answers compliance questions. Pick by the job, not the logo.
Northwest Registered Agent pricing verified August 11, 2026 from their public pricing page and current independent reviews. Prices change; check theirs before you decide. Spot an outdated number? Tell us and we fix it.
Where Northwest Registered Agent genuinely wins.
The privacy standard
Their address on your public filings, minimal data sharing, and a long record of meaning it. If keeping your home address off the internet is the priority, they set the bar.
Real humans, no scripts
Corporate Guides who answer the phone and know the answer. Their support reputation is earned.
Simple, honest pricing of their own
$39 formation and $125/yr agent with no upsell gauntlet. We respect it; it is the same philosophy we run.
Where File.Business pulls ahead.
An agent is a mailbox; this is an operating system
Northwest reminds you of deadlines. Business OS tracks them across 51 jurisdictions, files the reports ($99 flat), stores every document, and answers questions with BosAI at 2am.
The free tier they do not have
A File.Business workspace is free forever: calendar view, score, research. Northwest has no $0 way to start.
Filings priced like a menu
Annual report $147, S-Corp election $147, foreign qualification $199, all plus state fees at cost. With an agent-only provider, every filing is a DIY project.
One workspace for a portfolio
From 5 entities, volume pricing applies automatically and the whole portfolio shares one calendar and one team. Agent-only pricing multiplies; platforms consolidate.
Already with Northwest Registered Agent?
Using Northwest today? Two honest options: keep them as agent and run a free File.Business workspace alongside for the calendar, or consolidate: we file the agent change ($49 + state fee) and everything lives in one place at $149/yr.
No card. Connect the entity and see the calendar Northwest does not give you.
Keep Northwest if their privacy posture matters to you; the platforms coexist. Or consolidate at $149/yr.
Annual reports at $99 flat, AutoFile if you never want to think about it.