Stripe Atlas prices US incorporation at a flat $500 one-time fee

The workload

Incorporating a US company from outside the country, or without a lawyer, requires choosing an entity type, filing with a state, obtaining a federal tax ID, issuing founder equity correctly, and appointing a registered agent, all before a bank account or payments account can be opened. Verified: Stripe Atlas's product page, retrieved 16 September 2026, states that Atlas performs Delaware incorporation with expedited processing, obtains an EIN, issues founder equity and share purchase agreements, and files the Section 83(b) election on the founder's behalf. Stripe's Atlas documentation, also retrieved 16 September 2026, adds that the process completes in two business days and includes legal document templates developed with the law firm Cooley.

What the documents show

Verified: the documentation states Atlas can form either a Delaware LLC or a Delaware C corporation, and that a registered agent is included to satisfy Delaware's requirement that one be maintained. The documentation also carries an explicit disclaimer that Atlas does not provide legal, tax, or accounting advice, which means the founder, not Stripe, remains responsible for judging whether Delaware incorporation suits their situation. Neither page asserts that forming a US company is required to sell software from outside the US; both describe only what Atlas itself does for a founder who has already decided to incorporate in Delaware.

The operating cost

Verified: the one-time fee is $500, covering incorporation, the EIN, equity issuance, the 83(b) filing, document templates, $2,500 in Stripe product credit, access to a stated $50,000 in partner discounts, and the first year of registered agent service. After the first year, the registered agent renews at $100 annually, a recurring cost tied to Delaware's requirement that an in-state agent be maintained for as long as the company exists. The product page also states the $500 fee can be refunded if the founder deposits $5,000 into a Stripe Treasury account, a condition that converts the fee into a balance-holding requirement rather than removing the cost.

The stop condition

The documented obligation is set by Delaware law, not by Stripe: the registered agent fee recurs annually for as long as the company remains incorporated there, and stops only when the company is dissolved or the agent service is moved elsewhere. This is editorial: a founder who never lands a US customer, investor or processor that requires a US entity has no obligation stated in these documents to incorporate at all.

• Does the business actually need a US legal entity, or would a home-country structure satisfy the same customers and processors?
• Who is tracking the $100 annual renewal so it doesn't lapse unnoticed?
• Has the $5,000 Treasury deposit option been compared against simply paying the $500 fee outright?

Atlas prices the paperwork of incorporation, not the judgment call underneath it, and the documentation says so directly.