Wyoming Business Name Checker
Check if your business name is available in Wyoming. Validate Wyoming naming rules instantly, then confirm availability free in the Secretary of State's business database before mailing your $60 reservation.
Validate the name format, then search the official Wyoming Secretary of State — Business Entity Search records.
1.Search the state registry (Wyoming Secretary of State — Business Entity 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
$60
Holds the name for
120 days
How to file
Application for Reservation of Name, filed primarily by mail with a check
Online availability through the WyoBiz portal is not confirmed — plan on mailing the form with a check, and allow up to 15 business days for paper processing. Renewal terms are not clearly published.
How Business Name Availability Works in Wyoming
Wyoming earned its reputation as a formation hub honestly: no state income tax, strong privacy for LLC members, a $100 filing fee, and an annual report license tax starting at $60 (based on in-state assets). The Secretary of State's business database is free to search and covers every entity, reserved name, and trade name on file.
The paperwork culture is more traditional than the reputation suggests. The Application for Reservation of Name — $60 for a 120-day hold — is filed primarily by mail with a check, and paper processing can take up to 15 business days. If your launch date is close, factor the mail lag in or skip the reservation and file the formation online instead.
Wyoming's trade-name filing is its own character: the Registration of Trade Name costs $100, must be signed and notarized — a requirement almost no other state imposes — and then lasts 10 years, the longest DBA term in the country. Slow to get, but you will not think about renewing it for a decade.
Wyoming Business Name Requirements
✓ Name Requirements
- • LLCs must include "LLC", "L.L.C.", "LC", "L.C.", "Limited Liability Company", "Limited Company", "Ltd. Liability Company", "Ltd. Liability Co." or "Limited Liability Co."
- • Corporations must include "Inc.", "Corp.", "Incorporated" or "Corporation"
- • Must be distinguishable upon the records of the Wyoming Secretary of State — confirm borderline calls with the Business Division before filing
- • Cannot suggest a government affiliation
- • Cannot be misleading about business purpose
- • Governed by W.S. 17-29-108 (LLCs) and W.S. 17-16-401 (corporations)
✗ Restricted Words
- • "Bank" — typically requires approval from the Wyoming Division of Banking
- • "Trust" — Wyoming charters public trust companies — "trust" in a name draws Division of Banking review
- • "Insurance" — regulated by the Wyoming Department of Insurance
- • "University" — implies an educational institution — approval from the state's education authorities is typically required
- • "Credit Union" — restricted to chartered credit unions
- • "Olympic" — federally protected under the Ted Stevens Olympic and Amateur Sports Act
How to Check Name Availability in Wyoming
Use the tool above to open the Wyoming Secretary of State — Business Entity Search search and look up existing LLCs, corporations, and reserved names. Paper filings can take up to 15 business days to process — build that lag into your timeline if you are mailing an Application for Reservation of Name.
Search the USPTO database at uspto.gov — clearing the Wyoming 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.
Wyoming lets you reserve a name for 120 days for $60 — Application for Reservation of Name, filed primarily by mail with a check.
What Registering a Name Costs in Wyoming
| Filing | State Fee | Frequency |
|---|---|---|
| LLC formation filing | $100 | One-time |
| Annual report / recurring fee | $60 | Yearly |
| Name reservation | $60 | Holds the name 120 days |
| Registration of Trade Name | Filed with the Wyoming Secretary of State for $100. The application must be signed and notarized, and the registration lasts 10 years — the longest DBA term anywhere. | |
State filing fees as of 2026. See the Wyoming 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 Wyoming for free?
Use the Wyoming Secretary of State's free business entity search. It covers active and inactive entities, reserved names, and registered trade names — everything your filing is compared against under the distinguishable-upon-the-records standard. For a borderline similarity, contact the Business Division for an informal read before filing, since punctuation and designator changes will not make a taken name available.
How much does it cost to reserve a business name in Wyoming?
A Wyoming name reservation costs $60 and holds the name for 120 days. File the Application for Reservation of Name primarily by mail with a check — online filing for reservations is not confirmed through the WyoBiz portal. Budget for processing: paper filings can take up to 15 business days, and renewal terms are not clearly published, so treat the 120 days as one window.
What suffix does a Wyoming LLC name need?
Wyoming accepts the widest designator list in the country under W.S. 17-29-108: "Limited Liability Company," "LLC," "L.L.C.," "Limited Company," "LC," "L.C.," "Ltd. Liability Company," "Ltd. Liability Co.," or "Limited Liability Co." Corporate designator rules under W.S. 17-16-401 are widely read as permissive for profit corporations — confirm your preferred format with the Secretary of State.
Why does a Wyoming trade name need to be notarized?
Wyoming's Registration of Trade Name is one of the last DBA filings in the country that must be signed and notarized before submission. The registration costs $100 and lasts 10 years — the longest trade-name term anywhere — renewable no earlier than six months before expiration. Plan for the notary step plus mail filing, since paper processing can take up to 15 business days.
What does a Wyoming LLC cost each year?
Wyoming Articles of Organization cost $100, and each year the LLC files an annual report with a license tax of $60 minimum — the actual amount is based on assets located in Wyoming ($0.0002 per dollar of in-state assets, with $60 as the floor for most small companies). There is no state income tax, which is a large part of why Wyoming remains a popular formation state.
Is Wyoming a good state to form an LLC in?
Wyoming pioneered the LLC in 1977 and remains popular for real reasons: no state income tax, strong privacy (member names are not required in public formation filings), a $100 filing fee, and a $60 minimum annual license tax. The tradeoffs are practical: reservations and trade names lean on mail and notarization, and if you operate primarily in another state you will still register there as a foreign LLC.
Related Tools
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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 Wyoming Names and the Mail-In $60 Reservation
Start with the Wyoming Secretary of State's free business entity search. It covers active and inactive entities, reserved names, and registered trade names — the records your filing will be measured against under the state's distinguishable upon the records standard. For borderline similarities, the Business Division will give an informal read before you file.
To hold a name, file the Application for Reservation of Name with a $60 check — primarily by mail, as online filing for reservations through the WyoBiz portal is not confirmed. The hold lasts 120 days; renewal terms are not clearly published, so treat it as a single window.
Mind the clock: Wyoming's paper processing can take up to 15 business days, so three weeks of your 120-day hold can vanish before the reservation even takes effect. If your Articles of Organization ($100) are ready, filing online is usually the faster way to lock the name for good.
Wyoming Naming Rules for LLCs and Corporations
Wyoming's LLC designator list under W.S. 17-29-108 is the most generous in the country: "Limited Liability Company," "LLC," "L.L.C.," "Limited Company," "LC," "L.C.," "Ltd. Liability Company," "Ltd. Liability Co.," or "Limited Liability Co." all work. Whatever abbreviation style you prefer, Wyoming almost certainly accepts it.
Corporations are looser still: W.S. 17-16-401 is widely read as permissive for profit corporations, without a strict mandatory-designator list. That flexibility is real but worth confirming — check your preferred corporate name format with the Secretary of State before filing.
Regulated words behave as elsewhere: "bank" and "trust" draw the Wyoming Division of Banking (Wyoming actively charters trust companies), and "insurance" belongs to the Department of Insurance. Names implying a regulated business the entity is not licensed for will be refused.
Wyoming's Notarized 10-Year Trade Name
Wyoming's DBA — the Registration of Trade Name — is unusual on three counts. It costs $100, more than most states. The application must be signed and notarized, a formality nearly every other state dropped years ago. And it lasts 10 years, the longest trade-name term anywhere, renewable no earlier than six months before expiration.
The economics favor commitment: $100 over ten years beats a $50 registration renewed every two. But the notarization plus mail filing means the trade name is not an impulse purchase — line up the notary and expect the same up-to-15-business-day paper processing that applies to reservations.
One strategic note for the privacy-minded founders Wyoming attracts: a registered trade name is a public record linking a brand to its owner. If separation matters, structure it deliberately — and remember a trade name registration is public notice of use, not an exclusive grant like a trademark.
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