LegalZoom vs Nolo – which is the better choice for your business? If you’re on the lookout for a Nolo vs LegalZoom comparison you can trust you’ve come to the right place!
In both instances, Nolo and LegalZoom provide accessible and affordable alternatives to traditional legal services. From registry and trademarks to assigning power of attorney to document production to business formation, Nolo and LegalZoom claim to provide the total package.
Choosing the right LLC service for you means considering your objectives carefully, but some online legal services are more capable, competent and cost-effective than others.
In this fully independent LegalZoom vs Nolo comparison, we’ll be taking a look at the pros and cons of these equally popular online legal services.
Legalzoom vs Nolo: Side by Side Comparison
The idea with LegalZoom is that whether you’re an experienced business owner or a first time entrepreneur, you’ll find the whole thing comprehensively accessible and easy to work with. LegalZoom first appeared in 2004 and has gone on to help approximately 3.6 million people with a wide variety of legal support services.
Meanwhile, Nolo law is a top-rated online legal service, overseen by an extensive team of experienced solicitors based across the United States. Nolo provides a wide variety of digital guides, legal articles, legal forms and direct support services for new and established businesses alike. Nolo is a true veteran on the scene, having been founded by Charles Sherman and Ralph Warner all the way back in 1971.
Overview of Nolo Legal Services and Forms
Nolo operates via a purpose-built legal website, which currently attracts in excess of 1m visitors each month. The primary services provided by Nolo’s lawyers and the brand’s advanced software include:
- Access to a wide variety of important legal forms required to both establish and run a business. Examples of which include sales contracts, assignment of commercial lease, LLC operating agreements and so on.
- Nolo’s LLC establishment service can also help entrepreneurs set up and launch new businesses, including LLCs, corporations and charitable organizations.
- Helpful legal guides and articles are published on a regular basis, providing detailed insight into such topics as debt management, bankruptcy, personal injury, employment, immigration, business formation, criminal law and family issues.
- All of Nolo’s lawyers have extensive experience and expertise in different sides of the legal profession, ranging from civil rights to intellectual property to complex child custody matters.
- Nolo offers a wide variety of software packages and eBooks, again covering an extensive range of topics – prices currently ranging from $25.00 to $40.00.
It’s worth noting at this point that setting up an LLC with the help of Nolo is charged at a fixed rate of $99, alongside all other applicable estate fees. Significantly cheaper than setting up a business via conventional channels.
Overview of LegalZoom Legal Services
Is LegalZoom legit? Just ask the millions of entrepreneurs this affordable legal service has supported to date!
LegalZoom differs from most online legal services in that the company was established to serve as a comprehensive one-stop-shop for all legal advice and support an entrepreneur or business owner could ever need. LegalZoom’s competitors may excel in some areas, butthey don’t offer quite the same comprehensive range of legal services.
Examples of which include:
- The streamlined and simplified establishment of new businesses, including but not limited to sole proprietorships, corporations and limited liability companies.
- Availability of attorneys to consult with in real-time at exponentially lower prices than traditional legal consultations.
- Comprehensive customer support included as standard and free business name checks with all new business establishment.
As an added bonus, LegalZoom LLC pricing is also unbeatable, given how the most basic package is available free of charge.
Side by Side Comparisons
| LegalZoom | Nolo | |
| Primary features | Specializes primarily in the establishment of new businesses and the provision of expert legal advice. | Primarily a source for books, software, legal forms, helpful guides etc. |
| Customer service | Telephone and e-mail customer support is available for all customers during normal business hours. | Customer service available exclusively via the on-site contact form.
Have to fill the form to contact support |
| Track record | LegalZoom established more recently, though has already assisted more than 3.6 million customers worldwide. | Nolo has been around for longer, though only recently introduced a new business establishment services. |
| Pricing | LegalZoom’s pricing structure starts at $0 for the Economy package. | Business formation is available at a price of $99 plus state fees. |
Nolo vs LegalZoom LLC, Pricing
Comparing Nolo vs LegalZoom LLC pricing, the two companies adopt entirely different approaches to their respective fee structures:
LegalZoom LLC pricing
With LegalZoom, there are three subscription packages available – Economy, Standard, and Express Gold. These are priced at $0, $329 and $349 respectively – the small $20 difference making the top package the most popular choice for paying customers. As a paid subscriber, almost all services are subsequently offered free of charge.
Nolo LLC Pricing
Over at Nolo, all products and services carry their own individual prices. For example, setting up a new LLC is charged at a flat rate of $99 plus applicable estate fees. EBooks and guides start from $25 each, while individual business forms cost between $10 and $15 to personalize and downloaded.
Notable Features Comparison
The biggest difference between the two services is that while LegalZoom is primarily a business establishment specialist, Nolo is more about selling individual products and services – such as books and legal forms. Both can assist with the setup and launch of a new business, though LegalZoom’s knowledge and experience of such matters is often considered superior.
In addition, LegalZoom provides the opportunity for customers to consult directly with lawyers, alongside a vastly superior customer service package.
User Experience and Ease of Use
Nolo really couldn’t be easier to use, pairing a well-designed website with an outstanding user interface and navigation system. Finding what you need is an absolute breeze, while creating and personalizing important business documents is simplified significantly.
The legal articles and guides published by Nolo are also exceptionally helpful and packed with useful information.
With LegalZoom, greater emphasis is placed on the business establishment process. The fact that there are lawyers on hand to consult with in real-time means you’re unlikely to encounter a challenge that isn’t easy to overcome. LegalZoom makes it just as easy to create, personalize and download legal forms, which again are offered free of charge to all paid subscribers.
It’s basically a dead heat where ease of use is concerned, though LegalZoom does provide access to a much more diverse range of legal services and direct consultancy.
Customer Support
Getting in touch with Nolo means completing the on-site form and waiting for a reply. There is a telephone number exclusively for billing inquiries, but all other communications take place exclusively by way of email.
LegalZoom therefore excels in the customer service department, providing telephone and customer support during office hours from Monday to Friday. Put to the test, both companies’ customer service representatives are knowledgeable, professional and always happy to help.
LegalZoom has the best support system. They offer phone and email support. You can also fill a form on their “Contact US” page and your questions will be answered thoroughly.
Turnaround Times
LegalZoom’s turnaround times vary in accordance with the package you sign up for. Economy users (i.e. the free package) can expect to wait approximately 30 business days (or six weeks) for their case to be processed and to receive their documents. Step up to the Standard packages and this is reduced to just 15 business days, while Express Gold subscribers can expect to receive their business documents in as little as seven working days.
Like Legal Zoom’s LLC service, Nolo also gets the job done with impressive speed. Charged at a flat rate, all business filings are processed within 2 to 3 weeks. As the rest of Nolo’s services are digital in nature, they can be accessed instantaneously once the payment has been processed.
Order Tracking
Both LegalZoom and Nolo provide a detailed order tracking service, so you can keep an eye on the progress of your order. Simply log into your LegalZoom account or enter your credentials on the Nolo website to see how things are progressing, or contact the relevant customer support team if you have any questions.