North Carolina Business Name Search
Data verified July 21, 2026 · Official database: North Carolina Secretary of State
LLC filing fee
Name reservation fee
Reservation hold nonrenewable
Quick answer: North Carolina names are checked in the Secretary of State’s business search, where you choose “Company By Name” and type your name into the “Organizational name” box. A new LLC name has to be distinguishable from the entity records and carry an ending such as “LLC.” The search page makes one thing plain: assumed business names sit in a separate index, so a clear entity result is only half the answer. The Secretary of State settles the name when your Articles of Organization are filed.
How to check a name in North Carolina
The checker at the top of this page gives you a quick first read. The four screens below walk the Secretary of State’s own search, which is worth following because its landing page splits the work into two registers: one for company names and one for assumed names. A clear result is a promising sign, never an approval.
Step 1: Open the Secretary of State business search
Open the business search run by the office of Secretary of State Elaine F. Marshall. The top control, “Search for,” defaults to “Company By Name.” Below it a “Words” menu sets how the match runs, and the required “Organizational name” box takes your term. Two links under the blue “Search” button matter: “Search for Assumed Names (Doing Business As/DBA)” and “Search for new companies and changes.” Company names and assumed names are two different indexes here, and you often want both.
Step 2: Enter the distinctive words and set the match
Type the distinctive words of your proposed name into “Organizational name” and leave the ending off, since the “LLC” suffix does not make a name different in the comparison. Watch the “Words” menu: it opens on “Starting With,” which returns every registered name that begins with your term. That is a useful wide pass for a founder clearing a name, because it surfaces close variants rather than only exact matches. Press “Search” when the term and mode are set.
Step 3: Read the count, SOSID, and status on each row
Results open with a count, here “BRD Search: Records Found: 9,” and each row pairs the name with its SOSID number and a status and type line. This search showed the lesson in one screen: several “Microsoft Corporation” records sit side by side, one “Current-Active” and others “Withdrawn by Merger,” with a “Multiple” status further down. The active record is the live conflict; a withdrawn or merged one marks a name whose holder has left the register. Use the ”+” on any close row to expand it.
Step 4: Open the record for its full status
An expanded record lists Legal name, Sosid, Date formed, Status, Citizenship (domestic or foreign), State of Incorporation, and Business type, above links to More information, View filings, and Order a document. The status line is your answer, and the citizenship and incorporation fields tell you whether a same-named company is a North Carolina entity or an out-of-state one authorized here. Reading this is preliminary work: only the Secretary of State decides the name when your filing is reviewed.
North Carolina LLC naming rules
North Carolina keeps the naming requirements for every entity type in one chapter, Chapter 55D, with the LLC ending set by G.S. 55D-20:
- Required ending: “limited liability company,” the abbreviation “L.L.C.” or “LLC,” or the combination “ltd. liability co.,” “limited liability co.,” or “ltd. liability company.”
- Distinguishable upon the records (G.S. 55D-21): the name must differ from every North Carolina and authorized foreign corporation, nonprofit, LLC, limited partnership, and registered LLP, and from names reserved or registered with the Secretary of State. The comparison runs against the entity records, so an assumed business name close to yours will not show up in it.
- No implied purpose: the name may not state or imply that the company is organized for a purpose it is not permitted to pursue (G.S. 55D-20).
- No general restricted-word list: the statute publishes none. Regulated terms such as bank, trust, insurance, and engineering are policed by their own licensing chapters, which set who may use them.
Where a proposed name is too close to one already on file, North Carolina lets it through with the written consent of the party that holds the conflicting name (G.S. 55D-22).
Reserving a name in North Carolina
A North Carolina reservation is $30 on the Application to Reserve a Business Entity Name (Form BE-03) and holds the name for a nonrenewable 120 days. The number to watch is that $30: some fee lists show a $10 charge next to it, but that is Form BE-04, which only transfers a reservation to a new applicant. It does not open a hold or extend one. Because the reservation cannot renew, treat it as a bridge timed to your filing rather than a long lease on a name.
Forming the LLC is a separate $125 for the Articles of Organization, and the annual report that follows is $200 by paper or $203 online, due April 15 each year after the year you form.
Assumed business names in North Carolina
If an LLC or a sole proprietor trades under a name other than its legal one, North Carolina calls that an assumed business name, often shortened to a DBA. Its 2017 Assumed Business Name Act replaced the old county-by-county patchwork with a single filing: you record an assumed business name certificate with a county Register of Deeds for about $26, and one certificate can list up to five names and be made effective in every county. There is no newspaper publication and no expiration, though you must record an amended certificate within 60 days if the information becomes materially misleading.
The part that surprises people is the index. Each Register of Deeds sends its certificates to the Secretary of State, which assigns an identification number and posts them in one statewide assumed business name database. So the filing is local but the record is searchable statewide, and it is a different register from the company-name search in the steps above. Clearing one does not clear the other.
If your North Carolina name is taken
- Change the words, not the ending. “LLC” versus “Inc.” does no work in the comparison. Swap or add a word that carries meaning.
- Read the status before you concede. A “Withdrawn by Merger” or “Dissolved” record may mark a name whose holder has left the register, and the detail page dates the change. The Secretary of State confirms it at filing.
- Search both registers. A name clear of companies can still be recorded as an assumed business name, and that index is separate.
- Hold a clear name for $30. The reservation will not renew, so use it once your filing is close.
If the words come back clear across your variations, you can start your North Carolina LLC with that name while the records still read that way.
Official North Carolina sources
- North Carolina business search: the authoritative entity database
- G.S. 55D-20: entity name requirements and the LLC ending
- G.S. 55D-21: the distinguishable-name standard
- G.S. 55D-23: the nonrenewable 120-day reservation
- Business Registration fee schedule: the $125 filing and $30 reservation fees
- Assumed Business Names: the statewide database and how to file
An open North Carolina name is only yours once you file
Forming an LLC under your name is the only way to lock it in. Northwest handles the North Carolina filing, registered-agent service, and paperwork.
Frequently asked questions
How do I check business name availability in North Carolina?
Open the Secretary of State's business search, choose "Company By Name," and enter the distinctive words of your name in the "Organizational name" box. Read the Status line on every near match, since only a live record is a real conflict. Check the separate assumed business name index too, because entity records do not include it. The Secretary of State makes the final call when your Articles of Organization are filed.
Does a North Carolina LLC name have to include "LLC"?
Yes. The name must contain "limited liability company" or the abbreviation "L.L.C." or "LLC," or one of the combinations "ltd. liability co.," "limited liability co.," or "ltd. liability company." The ending is required, and it does not by itself make a name different from an existing one.
How much does it cost to reserve a business name in North Carolina?
The reservation is $30 on Form BE-03 and holds the name for a nonrenewable 120 days. The $10 fee some fee schedules show is Form BE-04, which only transfers a reservation you already hold, so it neither creates a hold nor extends one. Forming the LLC is a separate $125 for the Articles of Organization.
Do I need to file a DBA in North Carolina?
Only if you trade under a name other than your registered LLC name. North Carolina calls it an assumed business name, filed as a certificate with a county Register of Deeds for about $26. One certificate can list up to five names and be made effective in every county, with no newspaper publication and no expiration.
Does a dissolved or withdrawn company's name stay off limits in North Carolina?
The Status line tells you where a record stands. A "Current-Active" entity is a live conflict, while statuses such as "Withdrawn by Merger" or "Dissolved" mark a name whose holder has left the register. The Secretary of State applies the distinguishability test to its records when your filing arrives, so confirm the status before you rely on it.