North Carolina Business Name Checker
Check if your business name is available in North Carolina. Validate NC naming rules instantly, then search the NC Secretary of State's business registry free — before committing to a state with a $200 LLC annual report.
Validate the name format, then search the official North Carolina Secretary of State — Business Registration Search records.
1.Search the state registry (North Carolina Secretary of State — Business Registration Search) for existing LLCs, corporations, and reserved names
2.Check federal trademarks at USPTO.gov — state approval does not protect you from trademark claims
3.Verify the .com domain is available for your name
4.Grab matching social media handles (Instagram, X, LinkedIn, Facebook)
5.Lock the name in by filing your formation documents — or reserve it first (details below)
Fee
$30 (per the statutory fee schedule in G.S. 57D-1-22 — confirm with the NC Secretary of State)
Holds the name for
120 days
How to file
Application to Reserve a Business Entity Name, filed with the NC Secretary of State
Explicitly nonrenewable under G.S. 55D-23 — when the 120 days run out, the name returns to the open pool. The reservation is transferable to another person by filing a notice of transfer.
How Business Name Availability Works in North Carolina
North Carolina names are checked through the NC Secretary of State's free business registry search, which covers corporations, LLCs, and partnerships along with reserved and registered names. Unusually, North Carolina puts naming rules for every entity type in a single chapter — Chapter 55D — so LLCs and corporations play by the same availability rules.
Under G.S. 55D-20(a)(2), an LLC name must contain "limited liability company" or one of an unusually generous set of abbreviations: "L.L.C.," "LLC," "ltd. liability co.," "limited liability co.," or "ltd. liability company." Availability follows the "distinguishable upon the records" standard of G.S. 55D-21(b) — though a conflict can be overridden with the existing holder's consent plus a name-change undertaking, or by court judgment.
Budget honestly before you commit: the Articles of Organization cost $125, but North Carolina's $200 LLC annual report is one of the priciest in the country. The name reservation runs 120 days and is explicitly nonrenewable (G.S. 55D-23) — with one remarkable exception: a buyer of another company's goodwill can reserve the acquired name for a full 10 years.
North Carolina Business Name Requirements
✓ Name Requirements
- • LLCs must include "LLC", "L.L.C.", "Limited Liability Company", "Ltd. Liability Co.", "Limited Liability Co." or "Ltd. Liability Company"
- • Corporations must include "Inc.", "Corp.", "Co." or "Ltd."
- • Must be distinguishable upon the records of the Secretary of State (N.C. Gen. Stat. § 55D-21(b)); consent plus a name-change undertaking, or a court judgment, can override a conflict
- • Cannot suggest a government affiliation
- • Cannot be misleading about business purpose
- • Governed by N.C. Gen. Stat. § 55D-20 (designators) and § 55D-21 (availability)
✗ Restricted Words
- • "Bank" — requires approval from the North Carolina Commissioner of Banks
- • "Trust" — implies fiduciary powers — North Carolina Commissioner of Banks approval needed
- • "Insurance" — requires clearance from the North Carolina Department of Insurance
- • "Engineer" — implies licensed professional practice — North Carolina licensing board authorization needed
- • "Architect" — implies licensed professional practice — North Carolina licensing board authorization needed
- • "Olympic" — federally protected under the Ted Stevens Olympic and Amateur Sports Act
How to Check Name Availability in North Carolina
Use the tool above to open the North Carolina Secretary of State — Business Registration Search search and look up existing LLCs, corporations, and reserved names. A business that buys another company's goodwill can reserve the acquired name for 10 years under G.S. 55D-23(c) — a striking exception to North Carolina's otherwise strict 120-day, nonrenewable reservation.
Search the USPTO database at uspto.gov — clearing the North Carolina registry does not protect you from a federal trademark claim.
Check that the matching .com domain is available before you commit — renaming an LLC later means an amendment filing and new bank paperwork.
Confirm your name is free on Instagram, X, Facebook, and LinkedIn so your branding stays consistent everywhere.
North Carolina lets you reserve a name for 120 days for $30 (per the statutory fee schedule in G.S. 57D-1-22 — confirm with the NC Secretary of State) — Application to Reserve a Business Entity Name, filed with the NC Secretary of State.
What Registering a Name Costs in North Carolina
| Filing | State Fee | Frequency |
|---|---|---|
| LLC formation filing | $125 | One-time |
| Annual report / recurring fee | $200 | Yearly |
| Name reservation | $30 (per the statutory fee schedule in G.S. 57D-1-22 — confirm with the NC Secretary of State) | Holds the name 120 days |
| Assumed Business Name Certificate | Filed at the county level with the Register of Deeds for around $26 (confirm with your county). Since December 2017, one certificate can cover multiple or even all 100 counties, and filings feed a statewide database searchable through the Secretary of State. | |
State filing fees as of 2026. See the North Carolina LLC tax and fee calculator for the full annual cost picture.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I check if a business name is taken in North Carolina for free?
Search the NC Secretary of State's business registry, which is free and covers corporations, LLCs, partnerships, reserved names, and — since December 2017 — a statewide database of county-filed assumed business names. Search partial matches of your key words, because the distinguishable-upon-the-records test of G.S. 55D-21(b) is applied against every name on file, and cosmetic differences like suffixes or punctuation will not separate two names.
How much does it cost to reserve a business name in North Carolina?
The Application to Reserve a Business Entity Name holds a name for 120 days. The statutory fee schedule in G.S. 57D-1-22 sets the fee at $30, but confirm the current amount with the NC Secretary of State before filing. Critically, the reservation is nonrenewable under G.S. 55D-23 — once the 120 days expire, the name returns to the open pool — though you can transfer the reservation to another person by filing a notice of transfer.
What suffix does a North Carolina LLC name need?
G.S. 55D-20(a)(2) accepts more variants than most states: "limited liability company," "L.L.C.," "LLC," "ltd. liability co.," "limited liability co.," or "ltd. liability company." Corporations follow G.S. 55D-20(a)(1) and need "corporation," "incorporated," "company," or "limited," or the abbreviations "corp.," "inc.," "co.," or "ltd." Chapter 55D applies these rules uniformly across entity types.
Can I reserve a business name in North Carolina for longer than 120 days?
Normally no — the standard reservation is 120 days and explicitly nonrenewable under G.S. 55D-23. But there is one major exception: under G.S. 55D-23(c), a business that acquires another company's goodwill may reserve the acquired name for 10 years. The provision protects buyers of a going concern who need time to reorganize before operating under the purchased brand. For everyone else, the practical answer is to file your formation documents before the 120 days run out.
How do I register an assumed business name (DBA) in North Carolina?
File an Assumed Business Name Certificate with the Register of Deeds — the fee is typically around $26, though it varies slightly by county. Since December 2017, one certificate can cover multiple counties or all 100 at once, and every filing feeds a statewide database searchable through the Secretary of State. The certificate is a disclosure filing only: it creates no exclusive rights to the name, so it is no substitute for entity formation or a trademark.
How much does a North Carolina LLC cost each year?
Formation costs $125 for the Articles of Organization, but the recurring bill is the headline: North Carolina charges a $200 annual report for LLCs, one of the highest in the country. Factor that into any comparison with neighboring states before you form. Missing the annual report leads to notices and eventually administrative dissolution, which releases your name back into the available pool for anyone else to claim.
Related Tools
NC LLC Tax & Fee Calculator
Estimate your North CarolinaLLC's filing fee, annual report costs, and recurring state charges before you form.
North Carolina Quarterly Tax Calculator
Calculate the estimated quarterly taxes you'll owe as a North Carolina business owner or freelancer.
Business Name Generator
Name taken? Generate unique, memorable alternatives for your North Carolina business with AI.
Business Entity Search Directory
Official Secretary of State search portals for all 50 states — look up any registered company.
Checking a Name in Another State?
Searching North Carolina Business Names with the Secretary of State
The NC Secretary of State's free registry search is the place to start. It covers active and dissolved entities plus reserved and registered names, and since assumed business names now feed a statewide database, you can check county DBAs from the same office. Search partial matches of your key words — the "distinguishable upon the records" test under G.S. 55D-21(b) is applied by the Secretary of State's examiners, not by you.
If a conflict surfaces, North Carolina offers two formal overrides. The holder of the existing name can consent in writing and undertake to change its own name, or you can present a court judgment establishing your right to the name. Absent either, you will need a genuinely different key word — designator swaps and punctuation changes do not create distinguishability.
Names implying regulated activity carry extra steps: banking words go through the Commissioner of Banks, insurance words through the Department of Insurance, and professional titles like "engineer" or "architect" through the relevant licensing board.
The 120-Day Nonrenewable Reservation (and the 10-Year Exception)
North Carolina's reservation is strict by design. The Application to Reserve a Business Entity Name holds a name for 120 days, and G.S. 55D-23 makes it explicitly nonrenewable — when the window closes, the name goes back into the open pool and anyone can take it. The statutory fee schedule in G.S. 57D-1-22 puts the fee at $30, but confirm the current amount with the Secretary of State before filing.
The reservation is transferable: the holder can pass it to another person by filing a notice of transfer, which is handy when a founder reserves a name before the founding team or entity structure is settled.
Then comes the exception nobody expects: under G.S. 55D-23(c), a business that acquires another company's goodwill can reserve the acquired name for 10 years. It is the longest name hold in the state system and exists so that buyers of a going concern can protect the brand they just paid for while they reorganize.
Assumed Business Names: One Filing, Every County
North Carolina modernized its DBA system in December 2017. An Assumed Business Name Certificate is still filed at the county level with the Register of Deeds — typically around $26, though fees vary slightly by county — but a single certificate can now designate multiple counties or all 100 at once, instead of requiring a separate filing in each.
Every filed certificate also flows into a statewide database searchable through the Secretary of State, which ended the old problem of assumed names hiding in county record rooms. Search that database during your name check: an assumed name will not block your LLC filing the way an entity name does, but a confusingly similar brand in your market is a trademark dispute waiting to happen.
As everywhere, an assumed name is disclosure, not protection — it creates no exclusive rights. If the brand is the business, form the entity under the name or register a trademark.
Your first month of Jupid — completely free
New here? Enter this code at checkout and your first month is on us — full AI bookkeeping, tax filing, and a 24/7 accountant, $0 for 30 days.
New customers. First month free with code NEW2026, cancel anytime.