Stripe Atlas vs. Clerky vs. LegalZoom: 2026 Incorporation Guide for Startup Founders

Stripe Atlas vs. Clerky vs. LegalZoom: Head-to-Head Comparison

What Stripe Atlas Does

Stripe launched Atlas in 2016. You pay $500 one time and get your company formed in Delaware.

Here is what you get for $500:

• Delaware C Corp or LLC incorporation, processed in 1 to 2 business days

• EIN registration. 1 to 2 business days if you have a US SSN. 15 to 25 business days if you do not

• Founder equity issuance and stock purchase agreements

• 83(b) election filing. Atlas does this automatically for all founders

• First year of registered agent service ($100 per year after that)

• Legal documents built in collaboration with Cooley LLP

• $2,500 in Stripe product credits plus $50,000 in partner discounts from AWS, Mercury, Xero, and others

• Ability to open a bank account with Mercury or Brex before your EIN arrives

Atlas is not a law firm. It does not review your specific situation. Once your documents are filed, Atlas is done.

What Clerky Does

Two startup attorneys built Clerky. The goal was to give founders attorney-quality documents without paying attorney prices.

The Company Lifetime Package costs $819 one time. A Pay Per Use option also exists if you only need the formation itself.

Here is what the Lifetime Package includes:

• Delaware C Corp incorporation, processed in 2 to 3 business days

• Post-incorporation setup including founder stock with vesting, bylaws, IP assignment, and board consents

• Pre-filled 83(b) elections with automated reminders

• Advanced delay protection if Delaware rejects your filing

• Unlimited lifetime access to SAFEs, convertible notes, hiring paperwork, equity grants, and maintenance filings

• First year of registered agent service ($125 per year after that)

Clerky also uses software-generated templates. No attorney reviews your specific company before filing. The difference from Atlas is what you get after you incorporate.

What LegalZoom Does

LegalZoom has been forming businesses since 2001 and has handled millions of filings. It is the generalist option. Any state, any entity type, from single-member LLCs to nonprofits.

Weighing other providers? We also compare Stripe Atlas vs Firstbase and doola vs Stripe Atlas.

Corporation formation starts at $149 plus state filing fees. Higher tiers add an EIN and attorney consultations, with the top tier at $399 before state fees. Registered agent service is not bundled. It costs $249 per year, the highest renewal of the three.

Here is what you get:

• Articles of incorporation filed in any state, not just Delaware

• Business name check and filing handled for you

• EIN as a paid add-on or bundled into higher tiers

• Attorney consultations on the top tier

• Optional ongoing legal plans for general business documents

What LegalZoom does not do is startup-specific. There is no automatic 83(b) filing, no founder stock with vesting, no IP assignment, and no SAFEs. Its documents are built for Main Street businesses, not venture-backed C Corps.

Pricing

Atlas charges you $500 once. Your only recurring cost is $100 per year for the registered agent after year one.

Clerky charges $819 for the Lifetime Package. You get unlimited access to all their standard post-formation documents. If you plan to raise a round and need SAFEs, hiring templates, and equity paperwork, the Lifetime Package pays for itself quickly. If you just want to incorporate and handle everything else elsewhere, you are paying $319 more than Atlas for documents you may never use.

Clerky also offers Pay Per Use at a lower upfront cost. You buy documents individually as you need them.

LegalZoom looks cheapest at $149, but the comparison shifts once you add what Atlas and Clerky bundle. The EIN, the first year of registered agent service, and startup-standard legal documents are all extras or absent. A typical first-year LegalZoom corporation runs $500 to $750 after state fees and the $249 registered agent, without any of the startup paperwork.

Document Quality

Atlas and Clerky both produce Delaware-standard startup formation documents. Both work with experienced startup attorneys to build their templates. For a standard setup with two founders, a typical equity split, and no unusual provisions, either service gives you legally sound documents.

The problem shows up when your situation is not standard. Neither Atlas nor Clerky can handle double trigger acceleration, super voting shares, or non-standard vesting. If you need any of those, you take the generated documents to an outside attorney and pay to revise them.

Plenty of incorporations involve questions that go beyond what a template can answer. Most incorporations are standard. But not all of them are.

LegalZoom's documents are general-purpose incorporation paperwork. They are fine for a standard corporation, but they do not include the founder stock purchase agreements, vesting schedules, or IP assignments that investors expect. If you form through LegalZoom and later raise, expect to pay an attorney to paper those pieces properly.

Processing Speed

Atlas processes your Delaware incorporation in 1 to 2 business days. That is the typical timeline, not a hard guarantee.

Clerky processes in 2 to 3 business days. Their Advanced Delay Protection monitors your filing and responds to any rejections from Delaware. Atlas does not offer this.

For most founders, the difference in processing time does not matter. If you have an investor waiting or a contract that needs a signed entity, Atlas gives you a slight speed advantage.

LegalZoom's standard processing depends on the state and can take weeks. Faster turnaround costs extra. If speed matters, Atlas and Clerky are both quicker by default.

EIN

Your EIN timeline depends on your situation.

If you have a US SSN, a US address, and a US phone number, Atlas gets your EIN in 1 to 2 business days. If you are an international founder without an SSN, the IRS takes 15 to 25 business days. Clerky follows the same pattern.

Neither service can speed up the IRS.

One thing Atlas does that Clerky does not: you can open a bank account with Mercury or Brex and start accepting Stripe payments before your EIN arrives. That helps international founders who need to start operating while they wait.

At LegalZoom, the EIN is a paid add-on on the basic tier or bundled into higher tiers. Timelines follow the same IRS rules as everyone else.

What Happens After You Incorporate

This is where Atlas and Clerky actually differ.

After Atlas, you have your documents and your Stripe account. You figure out the rest yourself. Need a SAFE for your first angel? You find a template, hire a lawyer, or use another platform.

After Clerky, those documents are already waiting for you. SAFEs, convertible notes, advisor agreements, offer letters, equity grants, and maintenance filings all live inside Clerky. The templates are attorney-designed. Founders who use Clerky through their seed round stay in it because the context carries forward.

If you will need legal documents in the next 12 to 18 months, the $319 premium Clerky charges over Atlas is worth it. If you will not, it is not.

After LegalZoom, you can subscribe to its legal plans for general business needs like contracts and leases. That is useful for a Main Street business. It is not a substitute for startup counsel or startup-standard fundraising documents.

Who Should Use Stripe Atlas

Use Atlas if:

• You want the lowest-cost path to a Delaware C Corp

• You already use Stripe and want everything connected

• You do not plan to need ongoing legal documents

• You are comfortable finding future legal documents on your own

Who Should Use Clerky

Use Clerky if:

• You expect to raise a round in the next 12 to 18 months

• You will need SAFEs, convertible notes, or hiring paperwork

• You want all your legal documents in one place

• Document quality matters more to you than upfront cost

Who Should Use LegalZoom

Use LegalZoom if:

• You are forming a business that will not raise venture capital

• You want to incorporate in your home state instead of Delaware

• You want the option to talk to an attorney without hiring a law firm

• You value a large, established brand over startup-specific tooling

A Fourth Option: Incorporating Directly With Rho

Full disclosure: Rho is our product, so read this section knowing that. It earns a mention because it answers a question Atlas and Clerky do not: what if incorporation and banking were the same step? Rho Incorporation files your Delaware C Corp with attorney review and opens your Rho banking account the same day, before your EIN arrives.

The fee is $400, refunded in full when you open a Rho account and keep a $10,000 average checking balance for 60 days. The package covers your certificate of incorporation, bylaws, board consents, stock purchase agreements, and 83(b) elections, plus a registered agent for year one and automatic EIN filing. International founders are supported, with the same longer EIN timelines you would see anywhere.

If you want the deepest legal document platform, that is still Clerky. If you want formation, EIN, and the account your company will actually run on handled in one flow, that is the gap Rho fills.

The Verdict

For most founders on a venture track, go with Clerky.

The $319 price difference is real. But Clerky was built for exactly this use case and the lifetime document access makes it worth it if you are raising capital.

Go with Atlas if you are on a tight budget, your incorporation is completely standard, or you are already deep in the Stripe ecosystem. Atlas is not a worse product. It is a different product built for a different kind of founder.

And LegalZoom? It is the right answer to a different question. If you are building a local business, an agency, or anything else that will not raise venture money, its home-state filings and attorney consultations make sense. If you are on the venture track, the missing 83(b) support and startup equity documents put it third of three here.

If you want to see the wider field, we compared the 10 best incorporation services for startups.

Neither choice is wrong. You just need to decide whether you want an incorporation service or a legal platform.

What Founders on Reddit Say About Stripe Atlas vs. Clerky

Across threads in r/startups and r/ycombinator, founders who have been through this give consistent advice.

Both services work for standard setups. Clerky wins if you are raising capital.

A startup attorney in this r/startups thread said it directly:

"I'm a startup lawyer and often recommend Clerky unless you have a complicated setup. If you're worried about it, you could hire a lawyer to look over your shoulder as you complete Clerky/Atlas to provide guidance and explain anything that needs explaining."

For most founders, this choice is not high-stakes. A lawyer reviewing your documents after the fact costs less than people expect.

For a simple filing, either works. File your 83(b).

A commenter in this r/startups thread on incorporation services put it plainly:

"If you're looking to simply file, Clerky or Stripe Atlas. The other advice on formation, be mindful to file your 83b election."

The 83(b) comes up in every single thread. Both services support it. Neither one can make you actually do it. You have 30 days from stock issuance and there are no extensions.

Pick your structure first, then pick your service.

A top comment in this r/ycombinator thread laid it out clearly:

"Short answer: it depends on your goals. If seeking investors or plan to give shares to cofounders: C-Corp is the way to go. Delaware is not the only option, but it's the standard one. The cheapest and fastest way to do this is with a boilerplate service like Clerky, Stripe Atlas, etc. You can always pay a lawyer later to change the agreement."

The service is secondary. Getting the structure right is what matters.

What Reddit agrees on:

• Both services work for standard Delaware C-Corp incorporations

• Clerky is the better pick if you are raising capital and need ongoing legal documents

• Atlas is faster and cheaper if you just need the company formed

• The 83(b) election is the most commonly missed step. Treat it as mandatory

• For anything non-standard, talk to a lawyer before you file

For a deeper look at either option on its own, read our full Stripe Atlas review and Clerky review.