Registered Agent Reviewed › California
How to check a registered agent in California
Mainstay Filing is our pick in California at $149 a year. To check any agent here: ask the California Secretary of State how it records agents, confirm a California street address, then apply the five criteria.
The California rule
Every LLC must name a registered agent with an in-state street address. A California resident, or a corporation registered with the Secretary of State as a corporate agent under Corporations Code § 1505. A business cannot act as its own agent for service of process. An individual agent's California street address goes on the public record. A registered corporate agent's address is already on file with the state and is not repeated in the company's filing. Changing agents has no state fee. Source: Cal. Corp. Code § 17701.13, checked October 20, 2026.
Providers reviewed in California
- Mainstay Filing $149 a year, same at renewal.
- Launch Registered Agent $34.99, then $48.99
- Northwest Registered Agent $125, same afterwards
- FreeRegisteredAgent.com $0, then $129
- InCorp Services $129, same afterwards
- ZenBusiness $99, then $199
- Bizee $149, same afterwards
- LegalZoom $249, same afterwards
How do I check a registered agent in California?
Our data has no commercial agent listing for California; ask the California Secretary of State how it handles agents. The address on the filing has to be an in-state street address.
Do I need a registered agent in California?
Every LLC must name a registered agent with an in-state street address. (Cal. Corp. Code § 17701.13).