doola vs Firstbase vs Stripe Atlas: which is best for founders outside the US?

For a founder outside the US, three services come up again and again: doola, Firstbase and Stripe Atlas. All three form a US company remotely, get the EIN without you needing a Social Security number, and point you toward a US bank account. On the surface they're interchangeable. Underneath, they're built for different founders.

This comparison sets them side by side on what founders abroad actually need: the right entity, the EIN, a registered agent, a usable address, and help with the yearly IRS filing that catches so many founders out.

Prices side by side

Published prices on the day we checked.

What two years really cost

Here's a lean LLC for a solo founder abroad, with a registered agent, before any tax preparation. Wyoming is used where the service lets you choose, and Delaware for Atlas, which only forms there.

• Do it yourself in Wyoming: $225 in year one ($100 to form plus about $125 for an agent), $185 in year two. About $410.
• doola Starter, Wyoming: $397 in year one ($297 plus the $100 state fee), $357 in year two ($297 plus the $60 annual report). About $754.
• Firstbase, Wyoming: $498 in year one ($99, the $100 state fee and the $299 agent), $359 in year two. About $857.
• Stripe Atlas, Delaware LLC: $500 in year one, then $500 in year two ($100 for the agent and Delaware's $400 LLC tax). About $1,000.

For a Delaware C corporation the picture changes. Atlas's $500 includes the state fees, the EIN, founder stock issuance and the 83(b) filing, which a lawyer would charge far more to handle. Year two adds the $100 agent and Delaware's corporate franchise tax and annual report fee, which depend on the company's shares and assets.

Stripe Atlas

Atlas is Stripe's company formation service. It forms a Delaware C corporation or LLC for a one-time $500 that includes the state filing fees with next-day expedited processing, the EIN, and the first year of registered agent service, which then renews at $100 a year. For a C corporation, it issues founder stock and files the 83(b) election, the step founders most often get wrong on their own.

It also gives $2,500 in Stripe product credits for the first year and access to partner discounts. Stripe says startups in over 175 countries have used it, and it publishes a guide for Indian founders.

What Atlas doesn't do is ongoing tax filing. Founders who form an LLC with it still need a US tax professional for Form 5472 and the pro forma Form 1120.

Atlas pays no commission to sites like this one. We recommend it anyway where it's the best fit, which is any founder forming a C corporation to raise money.

Good for: C corporations raising US investment. Less good for: lean LLCs that want a cheaper state and bundled compliance. An LLC formed through Atlas is a Delaware LLC, so it pays Delaware's $400 annual tax every year, which a Wyoming LLC avoids.

doola

doola is built around founders outside the US, and its plans reflect that. The Starter plan, at $297 a year plus state fees, includes formation of an LLC or C corporation in one to two business days, the EIN, an operating agreement, a registered agent and a virtual business address.

Its Tax and Compliance plan, at $1,999 a year plus state fees, adds the yearly state reports, consultations with a licensed tax professional, and business IRS tax filings. For a single-owner LLC, that covers the Form 5472 filing that founders abroad most often miss. Its Pulse add-on, at $300 a year, provides automated bookkeeping, and its Business-in-a-Box plan, at $2,999 a year, adds a dedicated bookkeeper.

Good for: LLC founders who want one provider for formation, address and yearly filings. Watch for: Starter renews every year, so it's a subscription, not a one-off fee.

Firstbase

Firstbase forms a Delaware or Wyoming company for a one-time $99 plus the state fee, with expedited EIN setup and access to a business bank account. The formation is cheap. The ongoing services cost more.

Its registered agent costs $299 a year per state, the most of the three. A mailroom costs $315 a year for the basic plan or $350 for premium addresses in New York, San Francisco or Florida. Tax filing, covering C corporations, multi-member LLCs and foreign-owned single-member LLCs, is $1,799 a year, and its accounting service is priced separately. Its Firstbase One bundle combines the mailroom, agent, accounting and tax filing for $2,388 a year.

Good for: founders who want a premium US address and a single dashboard for mail, agent and taxes. Watch for: the $299 agent renewal and the cost of the bundle if you only need part of it.

Which one handles your yearly filings?

This is the question that should weigh most, because the yearly filing is where founders abroad get hurt. A US LLC owned by one foreign person must file Form 5472 with a pro forma Form 1120 every year, and the penalty for a missing or incomplete Form 5472 is $25,000.

• Stripe Atlas doesn't file it. Budget for an independent US tax professional from year one.
• doola files business IRS tax filings on its Tax and Compliance plan.
• Firstbase files it with its $1,799 tax package.

If you choose a cheaper formation route, the right comparison isn't "$99 versus $297." It's the formation price plus a year of tax preparation, from whichever provider you use.

Banking and payments

None of the three is a bank, but each helps you open a US business account. Atlas companies are set up to use Stripe for payments from day one. doola and Firstbase point founders to partner banks and fintech accounts. Whichever you use, banks will want your formation documents, the EIN letter, a passport and a principal business address. Some won't accept a registered agent's address for that, so a real or virtual business address from your formation service can help.

What to check before you sign up

Price and features are on every pricing page. These questions aren't, and they matter more to founders abroad.

• Does it serve founders in your country? Formation services, and the banks they partner with, run identity checks and keep lists of countries they can't serve. Confirm your country is supported before you pay, not after.
• What ID will it ask for? Expect a passport for each owner and often proof of address. Have clear scans ready.
• When is support available? If you're 10 or 12 hours from US time, check whether support works in your hours or only in US business hours.
• What happens if the bank says no? A formation service can't guarantee a bank account. Ask what alternatives it offers if its partner bank declines you.
• What exactly renews? Plans, agents and mailrooms renew automatically. Write the dates down.

Switching later

None of these choices locks you in. The company you form is yours, registered with the state, not with the service. You can change registered agents by filing a short form with the state, move your mail to another address provider, and hire any US tax professional to file your yearly forms. The EIN, the bank account and the company itself stay the same.

The one thing to plan is the handover of your yearly filings. If you leave a provider that was filing your Form 5472, make sure someone else has it covered before the next due date.

How to choose

1. Raising money, or likely to soon? Stripe Atlas, Delaware C corporation.
2. Running a lean LLC and want filings handled? doola, on the Tax and Compliance plan.
3. Running a lean LLC and comfortable hiring your own tax professional? doola Starter, or do it yourself in Wyoming with a separate agent.
4. Want a premium US address and one dashboard for everything? Firstbase.

For the full process, from choosing the entity to opening the bank account, see our guide to starting a US company from abroad. If you're still deciding between an LLC and a corporation, our comparison of LLCs, S corps and C corps explains why S corporations aren't available to founders abroad.

Before you pay

All three renew something automatically, whether it's a plan, an agent or a mailroom. Before checking out, note what renews and when, compare the renewal prices rather than the first-year price, and decide now who will file your Form 5472. That one decision is worth more than any discount at checkout, and it's the one founders abroad most often leave until the IRS letter arrives.