How to Get a Free Virtual Address for LLC

How can you get a free virtual address for LLC?

That would be great, wouldn’t it? However, there is no genuine way of getting a completely free virtual address for an LLC.

There are definitely ways of getting a cost-effective virtual address for your LLC.

With the right LLC formation services, you can also add a virtual address service as part of the package.

However, absolutely free from a single service provider? I am afraid that’s a no.

Why can’t I get a free virtual address for LLC?

You may have seen mailbox and package forwarding services advertise free virtual addresses.

This is true, many of them do. You might also ask, “well why can’t I use one of those free addresses for my LLC?”

The answer comes in two parts:

Free Until you Use it

The free virtual address is more a marketing ploy than anything. Don’t get me wrong, there is nothing untoward going on. It’s just a way of getting your attention.

You may be given a free virtual address when you sign up for such a service, however, as soon as you want to start managing mail and packages that arrive at the address, you will begin to pay.

This comes in the form of processing and mail forwarding fees, as well as costs such as storage or disposal.

Not only that, most mailbox and package forwarding services charge a monthly subscription fee. The cost of your address is covered through that. 

Not suitable for an LLC

Another reason you will not find a completely free virtual address for an LLC is that the lowest-priced addresses are not suitable for business use.

Low-cost virtual mailbox providers will often use P.O Box numbers for some of their addresses. These are cheaper to offer to customers and enable the service provider to offer low monthly rates.

However, in most U.S states, you cannot use a P.O Box for an LLC. Essentially, the cheapest virtual addresses are not valid as LLC addresses.

An LLC requires a real street address and these cost more for a mailbox service to provide. This means it is not cost-effective for a mailbox provider to offer addresses that are suitable for LLCs for free. They will lose money.

How to get a Low-Cost Virtual Address for LLC

There are a few service providers that offer low-cost options for LLC use.

Incfile

Ultimately, if you are newly forming an LLC you can opt for a service such as IncFile to form your LLC. They provide a highly reputable formation service where you only pay for the state filing fee.

On top of that, they offer one-year free registered agent services. Once you are set up, you can then opt for their business-specific virtual address and mailbox service. An all-around, low-cost LLC and virtual address package.

Traveling Mailbox

Another recommended service for small businesses is Traveling Mailbox. You can read the full review here. 

In summary, Traveling Mailbox provides an excellent low-cost service package that is suitable for business use.

They offer good quotas on mail scanning, low-cost forwarding, and real street addresses, that can be used for LLC use.

This is the service that we use for our business purposes here at Mailbox Master, hence the big thumbs up.

Anytime Mailbox

If you have reached this article because you are really searching for the lowest cost virtual address for your LLC possible, you may find this with Anytime Mailbox.

This mailbox service provider offers some of the lowest monthly rates on the market, (read the full review here.)

HOWEVER, bear in mind that their cheapest addresses are P.O Box and you may not be able to use it for your LLC.

The mail quotas on low-cost monthly services are generally not appropriate for business use either. The answer here is to do your research on the mailbox plan before you buy.

Earth Class Mail

Earth Class Mail is another high-quality service that we have reviewed. This has business-orientated packages that provide prestigious virtual addresses for LLCs.

However, the word prestigious may give away the fact that these do not come cheap. This is a premium service provider, with businesses such as Shopify & Lyft on their books.

It doesn’t mean that small businesses aren’t catered for. They are for sure. It’s just anyone looking for a low-cost virtual address might find Earth Class Mail too expensive.

• Related Content: Mail Forwarding Services: Ultimate Guide 2022

Final Words

As we said in the introduction, there is no way to obtain a valid virtual address and necessary mailbox management service for free.

It will cost you money. 

However, there is a range of services available with some of them being very good for a low price. Our advice is that you check out our services reviews section to find out more.