Want to Start a Business in Texas?

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This page is dedicated to the best resources for starting a business in Texas.

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Business Resources in Texas

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 Texas.

Use the following business resources in Texas to learn how to choose the best LLC services, file the Certificate of Formation, 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.

Becoming an Entrepreneur in Texas

Just Starting Out

Every Texas 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:

Coming Up With a Name

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 Texas. We have several naming tools and guides to help you get started with finding the perfect name for your Texas startup, small business, nonprofit or corporation.

Different Types of Business Formation

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.

Forming Your Texas Business

Now that you’ve created a business plan, found a name and chose your Texas 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.

LLC Checklist

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

Formation Necessities

Highly Recommended Services for Your Business

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 Texas startup:

Registered Agent

A Texas 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.

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

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 an assumed name, is an easy process that is achieved by registering a DBA with the State of Texas.

Branding

You can probably think of a dozen different companies in Texas 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.

Financing Your Texas 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 Texas 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.

Setting Up a Bank Account

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.

Getting a Business Credit Card

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.

Finding Small Business Loans

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.

Small Business Financing for Female Entrepreneurs

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.

Maintaining Your Small Business

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

Make Sure Your Business is Compliant

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

Set Up Accounting and Bookkeeping

Having a business accountant will help you take advantage of tax benefits and potentially save you and your Texas 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.

Recommended: Hiring an accountant can save your company thousands of dollars in taxes each year. Get a free tax consultation with 1-800Accountant.

Set Up a Business Phone

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 Texas business set up phone services.

Build a Business Website

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 Texas business as well as suggestions for which tools to use based on your business type and knowledge level.

Business Resources for Women

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.

Texas Business Resources

Texas Economic Development Corporation

The Texas Economic Development Corporation’s (TxEDC’s) primary purpose is to offer vital information to businesses and companies looking to expand or transfer in Texas. The organization provides insights on starting and growing a business, funding programs, various incentives, and more.

AustinSmallBusinessAnswers.com

AustinSmallBusinessAnswers.com is an organization formed to help entrepreneurs navigate through the vast small business resources network. The team works in partnership with other organizations, chambers, lenders, and a host of other business experts to connect entrepreneurs to the right resources to jumpstart their business.

San Antonio Small Business Development Center

The San Antonio Small Business Development Center ensures that entrepreneurs get access to a variety of business programs and activities to a successful startup. The SBDC organization offers one-on-one confidential business advising, low cost small business workshops, a wide referral network, established business partners, and more.

Journey Coworking

Thought of as a ‘communal think tank’, Journey Coworking is a new East Austin co-working space designed specifically for the entrepreneurs, creators, and innovators of Austin. In addition to serving as a place for their daily grind, membership also includes anything from stand-up desks, hi-tech conference rooms, and uniquely themed phone booths to a wellness studio, on-site food trucks, and a coffee/juice bar serving cold brew and Kombucha on tap. Add in the showers, bocce ball court, and sleeping pods, it’s a place where any business can live, work and play.

Capital Factory

Situated in the Downtown Innovation Zone of Austin, Capital Factory helps entrepreneurs learn, work, and accelerate. An idyllic co-working space, Capital Factory boasts of an entirely open floor plan complete with co-working and dedicated desks, a classroom, meeting rooms, a break room, and an events space where entrepreneurs can easily man their business.

Thinktiv

Having launched more than 200 companies since it started in 2006, Thinktiv is recognized as one of the best business builders in the world today. Thinktiv, as a business builder, utilizes a unique service platform that is client centered. So unique is this platform that it revolutionizes business-building rules.

SKU

SKU is a startup accelerator program that assists consumer packaged goods companies to foster their business growth and development. With SKU, these companies are provided with all the necessary support required to achieve its goals from expert business mentors to personalized educational content to access to startup funding.

Tech Ranch

Tech Ranch is a supportive co-working community that helps entrepreneurs move forward and build a successful venture. Through Tech Ranch’s various support services, you can have a better and smoother sailing entrepreneurial journey. As a co-working space, Tech Ranch has dedicated and reserved desks as well as an office space and event space.

NTEC

The North Texas Enterprise Center (NTEC) helps promising startups with the key to succeeding – tools and resources. NTEC is considered one of the biggest business accelerators in the state, and they offer access to professional business guidance, high standard infrastructure and a vast amount of professional networking opportunities to get you started.

Geekdom

Geekdom is a co-working community where a collaborative environment between entrepreneurs, makers, developers, creatives, and technologists is fostered to enable great and cool things to happen. Geekdom’s no-nonsense membership program enables you to choose between a shared community space and a dedicated personal desk complete with office facilities and amenities.

Common Desk

A premier membership club, Common Desk is dedicated to bringing people together in one collaborative environment where they can conduct their business. At Common Desk, you also have the opportunity to network with other co-curious, and you also get to work in a space where ideas are developed to become success stories.

NoD Coworking

NoD Coworking is a co-working community that especially caters to tech startups and professionals. Membership with NoD allows you access to a co-working space, desks and offices, and meeting rooms. NoD also has mentors and is partnered with several companies to help its members establish the right network.

Central Texas Angel Network

The Central Texas Angel Network is a leading angel network that provides early state capital for startups and businesses. Aside from the early state capital provided, the Central Texas Angel Network also provides mentoring for businesses.

SCORE

SCORE is a non-profit organization that is more popularly known as the Counselors to America’s Small Business. The organization got this moniker because it provides the most comprehensive mentoring and counseling services all across the country through its many SCORE satellite offices. This mentoring is offered free of any charge by volunteers who are actively working as business professionals or retired business experts with different fields of specialization. The counseling is personalized and done on a one-on-one basis to give startup entrepreneurs ample information to get started.

Small Business Administration

The Small Business Administration is a United States government initiative to address the growing concerns and issues of small businesses across the country. With several satellite offices in the country located in various states and local areas, the Small Business Administration provides complete business assistance resources, tools, and vast amounts of information to jumpstart a business. From the required capital through funding programs to counseling and workshops that help improve your chances of business success, the SBA has a lineup of business programs to help you.

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