Wyoming vs Delaware LLC
Both are strong LLC states with no member disclosure. The real differences are the annual bill, how each state treats single-member creditor protection, and what investors and lawyers expect to see.
| Wyoming | Delaware | |
| Formation filing | $100 | $110 |
| Annual state cost | $62 minimum | $400 (HB 400) |
| Due | 1st day of anniversary month | June 1 |
| 5-year state total | ~$410 | ~$2,110 |
| Annual report | Yes (short, online) | None for LLCs — tax payment only |
| Member disclosure | None in public filings | None in public filings |
| Single-member charging order | Exclusive remedy by statute | Exclusive remedy by statute; case law is deeper |
| State income tax | None | None on out-of-state income of a pass-through LLC |
| VC acceptance | Rare | Standard, but for C-corps, not LLCs |
5-year totals = formation fee + five annual payments, before registered-agent fees. Wyoming's $62 is the $60 minimum license tax plus the $2 online fee; it rises only if Wyoming-located assets exceed $300,000.
Cost
Wyoming's annual license tax is the greater of $60 or two-tenths of a mill ($0.0002) per dollar of assets located and employed in Wyoming. A holding or online LLC with no Wyoming assets pays the minimum every year. Delaware charges a flat LLC tax regardless of size or activity, and HB 400 raised it from $300 to $400 starting with tax year 2026. Over five years that is roughly $410 in Wyoming against $2,110 in Delaware, and the gap widens for founders who keep several entities.
Registered-agent fees narrow the difference only slightly. Commercial agents in both states commonly charge between $25 and $300 a year, and you need one in whichever state you form in unless you have your own physical address there.
Privacy
Neither state asks you to list members or managers in the formation document, and neither publishes an ownership list. Wyoming does require your registered agent to keep a current contact person on file, but that record is not public. Delaware LLCs file no annual report at all, which means no recurring disclosure. Remember that privacy at the state level does not hide you from the IRS, your bank, or, for foreign-owned entities, FinCEN's remaining BOI rules.
Asset protection for single-member LLCs
A charging order lets a member's personal creditor collect distributions without seizing the LLC itself. Wyoming's statute says the charging order is the exclusive remedy, and it explicitly applies that to single-member LLCs: a point where some states' courts have allowed creditors to foreclose. Delaware's statute is also exclusive-remedy, and Delaware's Court of Chancery offers the deepest body of LLC case law in the country, which matters more to multi-member businesses with complex operating agreements than to a solo owner.
Where you actually operate matters more
Your home state still counts. If you live and work in California, a Wyoming or Delaware LLC must also register in California and pay California's $800 minimum plus any gross-receipts fee. At that point you are paying two states, and the “cheapest state” argument usually flips in favor of simply forming in California. Model the full stack in the tri-state matrix before you file anything.
Verdict
- Pick Wyoming for a bootstrapped business, a holding company, a real-estate or IP holding LLC, or a non-US founder who wants the lowest fixed cost and no public owner list.
- Pick Delaware when a multi-member deal, lender, or counterparty expects Delaware law, or when the LLC may later convert into a venture-backed company: though VCs fund Delaware C-corps, so a corporation is usually the better start for that path.
- Pick neither if you operate from one state and have no investors: form at home and avoid paying twice.
Ready to form? Follow the step-by-step guides for Wyoming or Delaware.