Search US business records and check a name before you file
Pick a state, type a name, and see what’s on record. We search records for 13 jurisdictions right here, from the official registry or the state’s own published data, and send you to the official search for the other 38. Every result says which.
Search business records
See exactly how we search each state, including sources, limits and today’s status.
What a name check can tell you
Taken: same name on file
A record uses your name once the state’s comparison rules set aside designators, punctuation and similar differences. The state would most likely reject it.
Similar names on file
Nothing identical, but close names exist. Whether yours is distinguishable is the state’s call, so look at them first.
No matching records found
The search worked and found nothing the same or similar. A good sign, not an approval, and not a trademark check.
Check not completed
The source was down, slow, blocked or incomplete. We say so plainly and send you to the official search. It never counts as “available.”
State registration is one check among several. A trademark, an assumed name (DBA) filed with a county, or a domain can conflict with a name the state accepts. How to check a business name properly.
Business search by state
- AlabamaOfficial site only
- AlaskaOfficial site only
- ArizonaOfficial site only
- ArkansasOfficial site only
- CaliforniaOfficial site only
- ColoradoOfficial data
- ConnecticutOfficial data
- DelawareOfficial site only
- District of ColumbiaOfficial data
- FloridaOfficial bulk data
- GeorgiaOfficial site only
- HawaiiOfficial site only
- IdahoLive registry
- IllinoisOfficial site only
- IndianaOfficial site only
- IowaOfficial site only
- KansasOfficial site only
- KentuckyLive registry
- LouisianaOfficial site only
- MaineOfficial site only
- MarylandOfficial site only
- MassachusettsOfficial site only
- MichiganOfficial site only
- MinnesotaOfficial site only
- MississippiOfficial site only
- MissouriOfficial site only
- MontanaOfficial site only
- NebraskaOfficial site only
- NevadaOfficial site only
- New HampshireOfficial site only
- New JerseyLive registry
- New MexicoLive registry
- New YorkOfficial data
- North CarolinaOfficial site only
- North DakotaLive registry
- OhioOfficial site only
- OklahomaOfficial site only
- OregonOfficial data
- PennsylvaniaOfficial data
- Rhode IslandOfficial site only
- South CarolinaOfficial site only
- South DakotaOfficial site only
- TennesseeOfficial site only
- TexasOfficial data
- UtahOfficial site only
- VermontOfficial site only
- VirginiaOfficial site only
- WashingtonOfficial site only
- West VirginiaOfficial site only
- WisconsinOfficial site only
- WyomingOfficial site only
Guides
- How to check if a business name is available
What a state name search can and can’t tell you, and the other checks to run before you file.
- Business name rules by state
Required LLC designators, how each state compares names, and whether consent can clear a conflict.
- Which state should you form your LLC in?
Why your home state is usually simplest, and what Delaware, Wyoming or Nevada really cost if you operate elsewhere.
- Filing an LLC yourself vs. using a formation service
What services add, what they cost on top of state fees, and what to watch for.
- LLC filing fees by state
State fees to form an LLC in all 50 states and DC, with links to each fee schedule.
- LLC annual report requirements by state
What each state requires after formation, how much it costs and when it’s due.
- Business entity statuses explained
Active, good standing, delinquent, dissolved, revoked, forfeited and withdrawn: what they mean and what they don’t.
- Business names, trademarks, DBAs and domains
Why a state accepting your name doesn’t mean you can use it everywhere.