Massachusetts corporation search
A Massachusetts LLC name cannot be deceptively similar to any corporation, limited partnership or LLC organized or reserved in the commonwealth.
Check a name against Massachusetts's naming rules
Example: a check of "Blue Heron Bakery LLC" against Massachusetts's rules.
- Ends with "L.L.C.", an ending Massachusetts lists for an LLC.
- No ending from Massachusetts's list for a corporation was found at the end of this name.
Get the matching domain name
Type a business name to check its .com, .net, .org and .us.
"Not registered" is the registry's answer at this moment. It is not a promise that the name can be bought at the standard price, since some unregistered names are reserved or sold at a premium. The buttons open Spaceship, a domain registrar, where the price is shown.
This checks the ending and the restricted words Massachusetts publishes. It does not tell you whether another company already holds the name. Only the state's own search can show that.
A private website, not a government site. Every state entry links to that state's official search.
Massachusetts's own search
- Run by
- Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts
- Called
- Search for a Business Entity
- Search by
- entity name, individual name (officer, director), identification number, filing number
The state's search is the record that counts. State Business Entity Search is not a government site.
The Corporations Division of the Secretary of the Commonwealth keeps the register, and its search tool is called Search for a Business Entity.
Massachusetts filing fees for a new business name
| Filing | State fee | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Form an LLC in Massachusetts | $500 | Certificate of Organization. Source: Corporations Division fee schedule. |
| Form a corporation in Massachusetts | $275 | Articles of Organization, M.G.L. c. 156D. Source: Corporations Division fee schedule. |
| Reserve a name in Massachusetts | $30 | Held for 60 days. Source: Corporations Division fee schedule. |
| Annual report for a Massachusetts LLC | $500 | Every year. Due on or before the anniversary date of organization. Source: Corporations Division fee schedule. |
Name endings Massachusetts accepts
For an LLC (Massachusetts General Laws chapter 156C, section 3)
For a corporation (Massachusetts General Laws chapter 156D, section 4.01)
What an LLC name must avoid in Massachusetts
Chapter 156C, section 3 of the General Laws sets two tests for an LLC name. It must contain "limited liability company", "limited company" or one of the abbreviations L.L.C., L.C., LLC or LC. It also cannot match or deceptively resemble another entity's name.
The entities covered are corporations, limited partnerships and LLCs reserved or organized in Massachusetts, plus foreign entities registered there. An LLC can still take a similar name if that entity consents in writing.
Corporate names and trademarks
Chapter 156D, section 4.01 is stricter in one respect. A corporate name may not be the same as another business in the state, or so similar that it is likely to be mistaken for it. That covers an existing name or trade name. A reserved name or a registered trademark or service mark also blocks it.
The other user's written consent or a court judgment can allow the name. For a corporation, the business name endings by state show how Massachusetts compares with other registers.
Searching Corporations Division records
The Corporations Division runs Search for a Business Entity, labeled MA Corporations Search on its page. You can search by entity name, by the name of an individual, by identification number or by filing number.
A name search can use four match types: Begins with, Exact match, Full text and Soundex. Run the name you want in more than one type, and try the plural and the version without the ending.
The Division also answers name checks by telephone at (617)727-9640. It calls a telephone result preliminary, so treat the website search as the one to act on.
Reserving a Massachusetts name
The Corporations Division fee schedule prices an Application of Reservation of Name at $30. The schedule says it cannot be filed by fax or electronically.
A reserved name is held for 60 days. The Division may extend it once for 60 more days on payment of an additional fee. If you want a third reservation, one business day must pass between the periods.
What Massachusetts charges to form and to stay in good standing
The fee schedule puts the Certificate of Organization for an LLC at $500, whether it goes by mail, hand delivery, fax or electronic filing. The fax and electronic routes add a $20 expedite fee.
A domestic business corporation pays $275 as a minimum for Articles of Organization covering up to 275,000 shares. Each additional 100,000 shares or portion adds $100.
The LLC annual report is also $500 on the schedule, due on or before the anniversary date of organization. That makes the yearly cost equal to the formation fee, and the LLC cost calculator adds it to the rest of your first-year spending.
Checking and claiming a name in Massachusetts
- Search the name in Search for a Business Entity using Begins with and Exact match.
- Confirm the name ends with an ending that chapter 156C allows for an LLC.
- Read when two businesses can share a name if a close match turns up.
- Mail or hand in the $30 Application of Reservation of Name if you want the 60 days.
- File the Certificate of Organization.
Massachusetts name search questions
What can I look up in the Massachusetts corporation search?
The state's search lets you look up an entity name, an individual name such as an officer or director, an identification number or a filing number. Name searches offer Begins with, Exact match, Full text and Soundex.
Can I check a Massachusetts LLC name by phone?
The Corporations Division takes name checks at (617)727-9640, but calls the result preliminary and says it should not be relied upon. A name may not be reserved by telephone.
How long does a Massachusetts name reservation last?
The Division reserves a name for 60 days and may extend it for 60 more on payment of an additional fee. A third or later reservation needs one business day between periods.
What does a Massachusetts LLC annual report cost?
The Corporations Division fee schedule lists the annual report at $500. It is due on or before the anniversary date of organization, and fax and electronic filings add a $20 expedite fee.
Does a registered trademark block a Massachusetts corporate name?
For corporate names it can. The Division's reservation instructions treat a trademark or service mark registered with the Division as a conflicting name.
After the Massachusetts name check
- LLC cost calculatorMassachusetts filing and report fees added up
- Business name rules by stateMassachusetts's endings beside other states
- Missouri business entity searchMissouri Secretary of State
- Arizona business entity searchArizona Corporation Commission
- Connecticut business entity searchConnecticut Secretary of the State
- Company name for a sole proprietorshipYour own name needs no filing. A trade name does, with county examples from Texas and California.
- How to change an LLC nameAmendment forms, filing fees and what the IRS says, for California, Texas and Florida.
5 official Massachusetts sources
- Corporations Division, Search for a Business Entity (MA Corporations Search), from the Internet Archive's copy of January 13, 2025.
- Corporations Division fee schedule, retrieved November 12, 2026.
- Corporations Division, name reservation and name check instructions, retrieved November 12, 2026.
- Massachusetts General Laws chapter 156C, section 3, retrieved November 12, 2026.
- Massachusetts General Laws chapter 156D, section 4.01, retrieved November 12, 2026.
Where a state page would not load, its stored copy at the Internet Archive was used and the copy's date is shown. Fees can change, so confirm the amount with the state before you pay.