Want to Start a Business in Florida?

Find the best resources to help create your informal business structure (sole proprietorship or partnership), corporation (S corp or C corp), limited liability company (single-member LLC or multi-member LLC), or how to file a DBA in Florida.

Use the following business resources in Florida to learn how to choose the best LLC services, file the Articles of Organization, obtain an Employer Identification Number (EIN), and decide whether you should be your own registered agent or if you should hire a third-party registered agent service.

Every Florida business starts out with a great idea. To get inspiration, you can try our business idea generator that can suggest businesses for you based on your interests and lifestyle.

Once you've found the perfect idea, it's time to create a game plan for your business. This step helps lay a solid foundation for the future of your company. You can move on to planning out your business with our business plan generator or simply browse our selection of startup ideas. We also have several helpful guides for planning out your business:

• Top 7 Business Planning Software
• How to Write a One Page Business Plan

One of the most important decisions you will make for your business is coming up with a name and then seeing if it is available in Florida. We have several naming tools and guides to help you get started with finding the perfect name for your Florida startup, small business, nonprofit or corporation.

• Florida LLC Name Search
• Florida Corporation Name Search
• Naming a Nonprofit in Florida
• Business Name Generator

A business structure refers to how a business is legally organized. The type of business structure you choose to form your business with can affect how your company is regulated, taxed, and more. Because of this, choosing the best structure for your business is an important decision to make. Below are guides on the different business structures you can choose to form your company so you can learn how to form a business that works best for you.

• Start a Business in Florida
• Florida LLC
• Florida Corporation
• Florida Nonprofits
• How Do You Become a Certified Woman-Owned Business in Florida?

Now that you’ve created a business plan, found a name and chose your Florida business structure, it's time to form your business. This process might seem complicated, but it doesn't have to be. And if you want to save time and have someone else handle the paperwork, you can use one of our recommended services, like ZenBusiness, which will help to form your company for you or you can form it yourself using our helpful guides and tools.

This Florida Checklist for Starting an LLC covers the necessary steps you need to take when you create your LLC.

Here are the required documents and forms you may need to help you get your business up and running in Florida.

• Free Legal Forms
• How to Get an EIN
• What are Articles of Organization?
• What is an Operating Agreement?
• Florida Articles of Incorporation for Nonprofit
• Selecting Your Florida Nonprofit Board of Directors

Depending on the type of business structure your choose and how large your business is, you may also want to consider using the following services for your Florida startup:

Registered Agent

A Florida registered agent is a person or business that sends and receives legal papers on behalf of your company. These documents include official correspondence like legal summons and state filing notices.

Florida requires every business to nominate a registered agent when forming a small business. Your registered agent must be a Florida resident or a corporation authorized to conduct business in that Florida.

We also recommend hiring a professional registered agent service to provide you with peace of mind and help you stay compliant with the law.

DBA

Filing a “doing business as” (DBA) name, also known as a fictitious name, is an easy process that is achieved by registering a DBA with the State of Florida.

You can probably think of a dozen different companies in Florida whose brands play an important role in your daily or professional life. Maybe you only buy certain brands or prefer to buy your groceries at one supermarket chain over another. Your dedication to these companies is primarily a result of one thing: their branding. Our branding guides and tools will go over the importance of branding your small business and provide some tips for getting started.

• Logo Maker
• The Best Resources for Branding a Business
• How To Build A Brand (The Right Way) For Your Business

Small business finance is the raising and managing of funds to finance and operate a new small business. This includes banking, small business accounting, building business credit, and raising funds for your business.

When planning your Florida business, you should determine what types of business funding options your company will need and when. Whether you are starting a low-cost business or starting a high-growth startup, knowing when to get funding and what kind of funding you need is important.

Opening a business checking account is one of the first things you will need to do as a new business. Business banking is a fundamental asset protection requirement for every business and, depending on your needs, may include checking accounts, savings accounts, credit cards, and merchant accounts.

Every new and small business needs a business bank account to pay their business insurance, take care of payroll, collect money, and enroll with a merchant account to accept credit card payments.

Check out our guide on the Best Banks for Small Business for help finding a banking account for your business.

Small business credit cards are designed for professional use and provide a line of credit to small businesses while helping to maintain personal asset protection. It is crucial for small businesses to have a small business credit card.

Our guides will help you understand the importance of having a small business credit card and provide the steps for finding and applying for the best credit card for your business.

Getting a small business loan is done by applying with a business lender, typically your bank or another lending institution, with the right documentation and your business plan.

A business loan can help to resolve cash flow problems, leverage growth opportunities, and even increase the value of a business. Making sure to plan for a loan ahead of time is extremely important, as is knowing the documentation needed by your lender when you do apply.

Grants, loans, government contracts, investors, scholarships, advisors, tutorials — there are plenty of financial resources for female entrepreneurs and women leaders, and we’ll help you discover the best ones for you and your business.

• Finance Articles for Women in Business
• The Top Loans for Women Entrepreneurs

Congratulations! Fewer than 14% of Americans have realized the dream of business ownership. To keep your Florida business running, make sure you keep up with required government filings and maintain a clear record of all earnings and expenses.

When you start a small business, you’ll need to determine if your business needs any licenses or permits to stay compliant.

• The Best Resources for Business Compliance
• Florida Nonprofit Compliance

Having a business accountant will help you take advantage of tax benefits and potentially save you and your Florida business a lot of money in taxes each year.

Finding a business accountant as soon as you start your business will ensure that you have the best advice from the very beginning.

• The Top 7 Business Accounting Software Tools for Startups

Getting a business phone number is important for many businesses. Having a phone number for your customers to contact you with can go a long way in ensuring that your business is viewed as professional, trustworthy, and legitimate. 

There are also different business phone services and answering services that can ensure that you are able to answer more than one call simultaneously and that all of your customers feel heard. Check out our different phone tools and guides to help your Florida business set up phone services.

• Phone Number Generator
• Best Small Business Phone System For Startups 2024

With growing technology, more and more businesses are going online. We believe all companies need a website regardless of their industry or size to keep up with the times. 

So, how do you build a website? Luckily, technology has recently caught up with the massive demand for tools to simplify website creation. It’s never been easier to build your own website without the need for any web designer experience.

Our tools and guides provide an overview of the steps to build a website for your Florida business as well as suggestions for which tools to use based on your business type and knowledge level.

• How to Build a Website in 2024
• How to Build a Website for Your Startup
• The Best Website Builders for Startup Businesses in 2024

Starting your own business is no small feat; thankfully, there are many valuable resources dedicated to helping women entrepreneurs start and succeed. From woman-owned business certification to grants for female entrepreneurs, we’ll help you discover the women's business resources that will help you get the most out of your entrepreneurial journey.

• Events for Women in Florida
• Women's Business Resources in Florida

The Florida Trend website focused on assisting Florida entrepreneurs by teaching them the basics of entrepreneurship and providing them with all the tools and resources to plan and start their business to success. It also has available financing resources for different kinds of businesses which small business owners can apply to.

Enterprise Florida in partnership with other business agencies and outside organizations aim to provide small business owners in Central Florida with comprehensive business resources and tools, trainings, financing options and marketing strategies to reach their business objectives with ease.

The Florida Small Business Development Center offers free consultations, affordable business trainings, access to useful business solutions and a wide selection of information resources for entrepreneurs who want to start a business in Florida.

The Florida Small Business Development Center offers free consultations, affordable business trainings, access to useful business solutions and a wide selection of information resources for entrepreneurs who want to start a business in Florida.

An affiliate of the Florida SBDC, Small Business Resource Network’s main purpose is to assist small business owners by helping them find expert business mentors and helpful learning resources and tools so they can kickstart their Florida startup.

The Florida Small Business Development Center (SBDC) at UWF is a program that enables Florida entrepreneurs to gain access to business tools, resources and training needed to start and manage their startup. They are focused on helping small business owners in fields such as growth acceleration, business continuation and many others.

Walt Disney World’s partnership with Orange County Government and the University of Florida made the National Entrepreneur Center possible. The center primarily offers small business resources, export and procurement aid and other services that helps local business owners.

SCORE Florida is a collaborative program of the U.S. Small Business Administration that provides assistance to Florida entrepreneurs with services such as business coaching, business counseling and free trainings, workshops and seminars.

A gender focused business center that was established in October 2004 in collaboration with the U.S. Small Business Administration. The goal of this organization is to empower women by assisting them with business; providing them with technical assistance, resources to write a business plan, business counseling and coaching as well as workshops and business trainings.

A government agency that provides the largest small business resources in the United States, the SBA Florida District Office creates means for Florida entrepreneurs to gain access to loans and grants, local assistance and startup and management programs. It also has a learning center where you can find hundreds of useful business resources.

Like the Florida Women’s Business Center, WeVenture is a gender-focused organization that aims to assist women entrepreneurs achieve independence through entrepreneurship. It provides services which include business mentoring and coaching as well as providing a network of opportunities.

Business Florida is an online business magazine that provides numerous incubator options to choose from. It also updates you of current and local business news in Florida.

The group serve as a leading voice of business to secure the future of Florida. The Florida Chamber of Commerce has fought to ensure that Florida is globally competitive through private-sector job creation to meet the demands of their growing population.

This department utilized the public and private sector expertise in assisting the Governor in advancing Florida’s economy through economic development, and administering state and federal programs and initiatives to attract, retain and grow businesses and create jobs in Florida. To enable businesses to innovate and grow, they have developed a business-friendly environment where the drivers are entrepreneurial spirit, competitive cost and streamlined regulations.

The University of Central Florida Business Incubation Program is a university project that provides Florida entrepreneurs funding or capital during the early stages of their small business. It also allows them access to available business tools, management trainings and other resources.

The Florida Business Incubation Association provides small business owners from Florida with a variety of options when it comes to startup incubators and co-workspaces. Depending on the area where you’re doing business, FBIA has all the right incubators specific to your location.

Canvs is nonprofit coworking space specifically designed for tech startups. The goal of the program is to support entrepreneurs so they’ll be able to start and grow their business with ease in Orlando. They offer comfortable coworking spaces, mentoring and guidance, weekly events and programs and a community where creative professionals work in collaboration to come up with fresh ideas.

Starter Space is a co-workspace that enables you to meet talented and professional founders, students, mentors and angels. They help early stage entrepreneurs grow and succeed in business. Starter Space fosters continuous learning and professional assistance to Florida entrepreneurs.

A coworking space and incubator located in Downtown Miami that focus on the goals of their clients where they utilize an international network of mentors, investors and key industry experts. Starthub is a hub for innovators and entrepreneurs that offers tools, programs, and extensive resources.

This is an office space built to provide your business with the workspace, technology, and business support needed to fuel your entrepreneurial spirit where your business is their business. Offering a range of options and services that deliver the flexibility and technology required designed to help you conduct business your way, whether full-time work space or just a meeting room for the day.

Enterprise Florida Grants opens funding opportunities for small business owners in Florida. Some of the grants and loans listed on their website include the small business loan program, bond financing, venture capital program, minority business development program and a lot more.

• Entrepreneur Quiz
• Business Ideas Generator
• Business Name Generator
• Logo Maker

• What Is a Startup?
• How to Start a Startup
• How to Register a Business
• What Is an LLC?
• Woman-Owned Business Certification

• Business Plan Software
• Business Accounting Software
• Business Website Builders