How much does it cost to register a business name in Connecticut?

The name itself is free to search. Filing the entity is what costs money: $120 for an LLC and $250 for a corporation, then annual report, $80 (llc) / $150 (corp), due by march 31 (llc) or the anniversary month.

Are there words I can't use in a Connecticut business name?

Words that imply a regulated business need consent first. In Connecticut that includes Bank, Trust, Insurance, Engineer and Architect. Names that suggest a government agency are refused outright.

How many new businesses start in Connecticut each year?

The Census Bureau counted 55,209 business applications in the twelve months to August 2026, +16.3% on the year before. Not every application becomes a registered entity, but each one is a name someone intends to use.

What if the Connecticut registry shows an inactive company with my name?

Only active registrations block a name. Of the 1.3 million entities in our copy of the Connecticut registry, 463,465 are active. A dissolved entity's name is usually available — but check whether Connecticut allows reinstatement, which can revive the older claim.

Does a Connecticut registration protect my name in other states?

No. It protects the name inside Connecticut's registry only. Nationwide protection comes from a federal trademark, which is why the checker runs the USPTO search alongside the Connecticut lookup.

What does a Connecticut LLC name have to end with?

One of the state's accepted designators — LLC, L.L.C. and Limited Liability Company. The checker searches the name with and without the suffix, because the suffix alone never makes a name distinguishable.

Can I reserve a business name in Connecticut before I file?

Yes. The Connecticut Secretary of the State charges $60 to reserve a name for 120 days. A reserved name shows as taken to everyone else's search.

Connecticut business name generator — every idea checked against Secretary of State records

Connecticut's filing fees sit at the higher end for New England, and the state charges an $80 annual report for every LLC from year one. Its business search is strict about the entity type suffix — search without the 'LLC' and you'll catch near-matches the exact search hides.

Is it taken in Connecticut? — Enter the name exactly as you'd file it; the Connecticut registry, USPTO and domain registrars are checked together.

Help me name my business →

How to land a name that's actually available in Connecticut

Check the name as you'd file it. With the designator (LLC) attached — Connecticut compares the whole string.
Verify at the source. The official Connecticut Secretary of the State search is the record that counts; registrations change daily.
Don't stop at the state line. A clear Connecticut result says nothing about federal trademarks or the domain; the checker covers both in the same run.

Already have a name in mind?

You don't have to start from ideas — the same checker verifies a specific name. Enter the exact name you're considering and it's searched against the Connecticut registry, federal trademark filings, and domain registrars in one pass.

Check a specific name →

Inside the Connecticut registry

Our copy of the Connecticut Secretary of the State records holds 1.3 million entities: 65% LLCs. About 463,465 of them are active; the rest are dissolved or otherwise inactive — and only the active ones block a name.

The most common words in Connecticut business names are Services, Associates, Group, Construction, Management and Enterprises. If your idea leans on one of them, expect close matches; the checker shows you exactly which. 64% of names end in an LLC designator. The average registered name is 24.8 characters long.

Name ideas that fit Connecticut — and clear its registry

Registry data says what NOT to build a Connecticut name from: Services, Associates, Group, Construction and Management are the most-used words in the state's registered names, so a name leaning on them will have dozens of near-neighbours. The generator treats those as background noise and favours combinations the registry hasn't seen.

When an idea clears, Connecticut lets you hold it: a name reservation costs $60 and lasts 120 days — enough time to finish the paperwork without watching the name every morning.

Remember the suffix: a Connecticut LLC name has to end in LLC, L.L.C. and Limited Liability Company, and the generator appends it before checking so what you see is what you'd file.

Connecticut naming rules: what the Connecticut Secretary of the State will and won't accept

Connecticut applies one test to every proposed name: it must be distinguishable upon the records of the Secretary of the State. The examiner ignores punctuation, spacing, capitalization and the suffix when comparing, so two names that look different on paper can still collide. For an LLC the accepted endings are LLC, L.L.C. and Limited Liability Company; corporations take Corporation, Corp. and Incorporated.

Certain words trigger a review. In Connecticut that list includes Bank, Trust, Insurance, Engineer, Architect and Cooperative — using one implies a regulated activity and the filing will be held until the relevant regulator consents.

What it costs: forming an LLC costs $120, a corporation $250 and a name reservation is $60 and holds the name for 120 days. Online filings 2-3 business days.

Keeping it: Annual report, $80 (LLC) / $150 (corp), due by March 31 (LLC) or the anniversary month. Miss it and the entity slides to an inactive status — at which point the name can be taken by someone else.

Source: the Connecticut Secretary of the State, (860) 509-6003 — official website (fee schedule). Fees change; confirm before filing.

How busy is Connecticut right now?

The U.S. Census Bureau counted 55,209 business applications from Connecticut in the twelve months ending August 2026 — +16.3% on the year before, the 34th-highest total of any state and 15.0 per 1,000 residents (ranked 32nd per person). April was the busiest month with 6,099 applications, and Connecticut accounts for 0.9% of all U.S. filings.

That's the crowd your name has to stand apart from — the generator scores ideas against what's already registered, not against a blank slate.

What America names its businesses — 26 million registered names decoded →

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Business Formation Statistics (monthly, not seasonally adjusted). 2019 comparison: 32,909 applications in calendar 2019.

The four tests a Connecticut business name has to pass

1. Nobody active already has it. The Connecticut Secretary of the State compares your name against every entity currently on its books; a company that was dissolved or had its registration revoked normally doesn't count, although one that lapsed only recently could be reinstated — the checker calls that out when it sees it.

2. It's genuinely different, not just formatted differently. "Distinguishable" in Connecticut means more than a comma, an ampersand, a plural or a different suffix. Sound-alikes and spell-alikes are the usual reason a filing bounces.

3. It carries the right designator. An LLC's legal name has to end in an LLC designator; a corporation needs Inc., Corp., Company or another form Connecticut accepts. The designator is part of the name the state records.

4. It doesn't step on a trademark. The registry doesn't look at the USPTO, so a name can clear Connecticut and still be a federal infringement. That is why the trademark check runs alongside the registry search here.

Rules, fees and reservation periods are set in Connecticut statute and are revised from time to time; for a filing decision, the Connecticut Secretary of the State's own published guidance controls. This page is a practical guide, not legal advice.

About the Connecticut Secretary of the State

The Connecticut Secretary of the State maintains Connecticut's registry of corporations, LLCs, and other registered entities — it is the system of record for Connecticut business names. Useful official resources:

Official Connecticut business entity search — the state's own lookup.
Connecticut Secretary of the State — official website — filings, forms, fees, and contact details.

Confirming the result on the Connecticut Secretary of the State's site

Treat the checker as the fast filter and the state's own search as the final word. Once a name comes back clear here, open the Connecticut entity search and type the name the way it will appear on the formation document — designator and all. Read down the list of matches rather than stopping at "no exact match": look at each record's status (only active ones block you) and at how close the spelling is, because Connecticut rejects near-duplicates as well as duplicates. If the name is still clear, reserve it or file the same day; registrations are first-come, first-served and the registry moves daily.

Frequently asked questions

How much does it cost to register a business name in Connecticut?: The name itself is free to search. Filing the entity is what costs money: $120 for an LLC and $250 for a corporation, then annual report, $80 (llc) / $150 (corp), due by march 31 (llc) or the anniversary month.
Are there words I can't use in a Connecticut business name?: Words that imply a regulated business need consent first. In Connecticut that includes Bank, Trust, Insurance, Engineer and Architect. Names that suggest a government agency are refused outright.
How many new businesses start in Connecticut each year?: The Census Bureau counted 55,209 business applications in the twelve months to August 2026, +16.3% on the year before. Not every application becomes a registered entity, but each one is a name someone intends to use.
What if the Connecticut registry shows an inactive company with my name?: Only active registrations block a name. Of the 1.3 million entities in our copy of the Connecticut registry, 463,465 are active. A dissolved entity's name is usually available — but check whether Connecticut allows reinstatement, which can revive the older claim.
Does a Connecticut registration protect my name in other states?: No. It protects the name inside Connecticut's registry only. Nationwide protection comes from a federal trademark, which is why the checker runs the USPTO search alongside the Connecticut lookup.
What does a Connecticut LLC name have to end with?: One of the state's accepted designators — LLC, L.L.C. and Limited Liability Company. The checker searches the name with and without the suffix, because the suffix alone never makes a name distinguishable.
Can I reserve a business name in Connecticut before I file?: Yes. The Connecticut Secretary of the State charges $60 to reserve a name for 120 days. A reserved name shows as taken to everyone else's search.

Already have a name? Run the Connecticut Secretary of State business search to see if it's taken.

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