Skip to content
The Formation Desk

Rankings of registered agents, LLC formation and foreign registration services in all 50 states.

Foreign registration picks · Tennessee

3 Best Foreign Registration Services in Tennessee (2026)

The The Formation Desk call for foreign registration services in Tennessee in 2026: TN Registered Agent.org ($199), Tennessee Registered Agent.co ($199) and Mainstay Filing ($199), in that order. TN Registered Agent.org takes the call: the Tennessee registration for $199, first agent year included, then $99 yearly.
Written by The Formation Desk editorial team
1
Top pick on this page

1. TN Registered Agent.org: best for adding only Tennessee

A $199 service fee plus state fees, then $99 a year for the agent

Editorial score 9.6 out of 10

The desk picks TN Registered Agent.org: $199 over the state fee to register in Tennessee, agent renewing at $99.

You get an in-state street address as the registered office, and papers served there are scanned into your account.

Its three-year bill sits under Mainstay Filing's, which counts heavily in our method.

In the price

  • Tennessee registration filed for you
  • The first year as your registered agent

Strengths

  • $199 to register, state fee extra
  • Year-one registered agent service is in the price
  • Then $99 a year for agent service

Cons

  • Tennessee only; your home state needs its own agent
  • EIN application will cost you $99 more
Visit TN Registered Agent.orgPartner link. We may earn money if you buy. TN Registered Agent.org up close
2
Lower renewal than Mainstay

2. Tennessee Registered Agent.co: best for Tennessee registrations only

$199 for the service, state fee on top; agent $99 a year after year one

Editorial score 9.3 out of 10

Runner-up, Tennessee Registered Agent.co: $199 over the state fee to register in Tennessee, agent renewing at $99.

You get an in-state street address as the registered office, and papers served there are scanned into your account.

On price and features there is nothing between TN Registered Agent.org and Tennessee Registered Agent.co, which makes the order a close call.

In the price

  • Tennessee registration filed for you
  • The first year as your registered agent

Strengths

  • $199 service fee, then the state fee
  • $99 yearly to keep the agent
  • A year of registered agent service comes in the price

Cons

  • Tennessee only; your home state needs its own agent
  • EIN application will cost you $99 more
Visit Tennessee Registered Agent.coPartner link. We may earn money if you buy. Tennessee Registered Agent.co up close
3
One price, any state

3. Mainstay Filing: best for companies working in more than one state

$199 with the state's fee added ($499 at checkout); agent renewal at $149

Editorial score 9.0 out of 10

Third, Mainstay Filing: $199 on top of state fees in any state, with the first year of registered agent service included.

Year one: free agent. Year two on: $149 a year, the same price everywhere.

TN Registered Agent.org undercuts Mainstay Filing by $100 over three years, and that is why Mainstay sits lower on cost.

In the price

  • The registration, prepared and filed for you
  • A free registered agent for the first year
  • Any service of process scanned for free and uploaded that business day

Strengths

  • Registered agent costs nothing in year one
  • Same price in all fifty states
  • $199 service fee, state fee on top
  • Free scans of served papers on the same business day

Cons

  • Agent renewal of $149 is $50 above TN Registered Agent.org
Visit Mainstay FilingPartner link. We may earn money if you buy. Mainstay Filing up close

The desk's 3 picks in brief

Pick Service Desk score Service fee Year two Good for Visit
1 TN Registered Agent.org 9.6 $199 $99/yr The lowest agent renewal we rank here Visit TN Registered Agent.orgPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
2 Tennessee Registered Agent.co 9.3 $199 $99/yr The lowest agent renewal we rank here Visit Tennessee Registered Agent.coPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.
3 Mainstay Filing 9.0 $199 $149/yr Companies doing business in several states Visit Mainstay FilingPartner link. We may earn money if you buy.

The scores out of 10 are the desk's own, drawn from the criteria on How we rank. They are not customer ratings.

What a Tennessee foreign registration service costs in 2026: year one, renewal and the three-year bill

Service Year one Year two Year three Bill over three years Agent covered in year one
TN Registered Agent.org $199 $99 $99 $397 Included
Tennessee Registered Agent.co $199 $99 $99 $397 Included
Mainstay Filing $199 $149 $149 $497 Free

Every price here was read off the company's own pages on November 12, 2026. Tennessee's $300 registration fee comes on top of every row and is left out of these totals.

Why TN Registered Agent.org is the pick

The desk's method puts 33% on spend over three years and 33% on work the price removes, and 34% across what renewal looks like, fit with the state and plain price display. For Tennessee, spend over three years did the deciding.

TN Registered Agent.org comes to $397 over three years, $100 less than Mainstay Filing. Both include a first year of agent service, so the renewal price made the call.

The full criteria and weights are on How we rank.

Registering a foreign LLC in Tennessee: fee, form and who gets it

To register, the company files the Application for Certificate of Authority, Foreign Limited Liability Company (SS-4233) with the Tennessee Secretary of State, Division of Business and Charitable Organizations and pays the state's $300. Tennessee also wants certificate of existence or good standing, issued within 60 days of the filing.

From then on the company owes the annual report ($300), due first day of the fourth month after fiscal year end (April 1 for a calendar year).

What to pull together first

  • Certificate of existence or good standing, issued in the 60 days before you file.
  • The company name exactly as the home state spells it, and when it was formed.
  • An in-state registered agent; any service the desk picked can fill that seat.
  • $300 for the state, paid when you file.
  • A date on your calendar for the annual report and its $300 fee.

What it costs to ignore Tennessee registration

Until it registers, an outside LLC has no right to sue in Tennessee courts (Tenn. Code Ann. 48-249-913(a)). The contracts it signs stay good (Tenn. Code Ann. 48-249-913(f)).

Tennessee foreign registration service: reader questions

Does an LLC from elsewhere have to register to operate in Tennessee?

Yes, once it starts doing business there. Until it registers it cannot sue in the state's courts.

What will foreign registration cost you in Tennessee?

$300 goes to the state and $199 to the service.

What does Tennessee call its foreign registration form?

It goes to the Tennessee Secretary of State, Division of Business and Charitable Organizations, and the form's title is on the facts line above.

Will Tennessee ask for something from your home state?

Yes: certificate of existence or good standing, issued in the last 60 days.

Do you still need a registered agent after you register?

Yes. Keep a registered agent with a street address in the state on file.

Who is our pick for foreign registration in Tennessee?

TN Registered Agent.org, since $199 plus the state fee, one year of registered agent service included, then $99 a year for the agent.

See also

Where the numbers came from

  1. Tennessee Secretary of State, Division of Business Services, last checked August 2026
  2. Tennessee Secretary of State, Division of Business Services, last checked August 2026
  3. Tennessee yearly filing: Annual report: fee, official source, last checked October 2026
  4. Tennessee report due date, last checked August 2026
  5. Tennessee formation fee: Filing fee, official source, last checked October 2026
  6. Tennessee registered agent statute, last checked October 2026
  7. Form SS-4233, Certificate of Authority for a foreign LLC, last checked October 2026
  8. Form SS-4241, withdrawal or cancellation, last checked October 2026
  9. Tennessee Revised LLC Act, Public Chapter 286, last checked October 2026
  10. Tennessee Revised Limited Liability Company Act, foreign LLC provisions, last checked November 2026
  11. TN Registered Agent.org: pricing and service pages, as of November 12, 2026
  12. Tennessee Registered Agent.co: pricing and service pages, as of November 12, 2026
  13. Mainstay Filing: Tennessee service page, as of November 12, 2026