| Guide | GDE-097 |
| Topic | US business entity search |
| Domain | Corporate intelligence |
| Last tested | 30 October 2026 |
Short answer: To check a US company, search the business entity register of the state where it was formed and read its status, formation date and registered agent. Treat a similar name or an aggregator copy as a lead until that state record confirms it.
What is a business entity search?
A business entity search is a lookup in the register a US state keeps of the corporations, limited liability companies and partnerships formed or registered there, used to confirm that a company exists, when it was formed, whether the state lists it as active and who accepts legal papers for it.
The United States has no national company register. Each state keeps its own, usually through the secretary of state, so the first question is where the company was formed. A company formed in one state that does business in another normally files a foreign registration there too.
Free registers differ. Florida shows officers and annual reports; Delaware shows the formation date and registered agent and charges for status. A registered agent is the person or firm named to accept legal papers, often a commercial service.
| • | Checking that a company named in a contract or invoice exists |
| • | Confirming a company was listed as active on a given date |
| • | Finding the registered agent and address on file |
| • | Matching a state record to SEC filings |
How do you run a business entity search?
Six steps from a company name to a dated state record.
Five free tools and two we could not test, each opened on 30 October 2026.
Florida Division of Corporations (Sunbiz): Sunbiz is Florida's free business entity search by name, officer, agent, document number or address. Detail pages show status, filing date, agent, officers and annual reports. No login. Working.
New York Department of State entity database: The New York Corporation and Business Entity Database is a free search by name or DOS ID. Results show status, entity type and date of first filing. No login. Working.
Delaware Division of Corporations entity search: The Delaware entity search is a free name or file number lookup showing formation date, entity kind and registered agent. Status costs $10; status with tax and filing history costs $20. No login. Working.
SEC EDGAR company search: SEC EDGAR is the free federal filing system; its company search shows the state of incorporation and filings of companies that report to the SEC. No login. Working.
OpenCorporates: OpenCorporates is a free aggregator that searches US state registers at once, useful for finding which states hold a record. Formation date and officers need a login. Working, with that limit.
California bizfile Online: California bizfile Online is the California Secretary of State's business search. Not tested: a security check loaded before the search page.
Texas SOSPortal: Texas SOSPortal is the Texas Secretary of State's business search. Not tested: the Secretary of State lists a $1.00 fee for each search.
What we tested: On 30 October 2026 we ran each tool with public inputs: listed companies and one generated name that should not exist. Sunbiz, New York and EDGAR returned current records. Delaware charges $10 for status and its first result click reloaded an empty form; OpenCorporates wanted a login for formation dates and officers; Sunbiz answered the generated name with neighbouring names, not a not-found message; California stopped at a security check and Texas charges $1.00 a search, so neither was tested.
Publix Super Markets: active, filed 27 December 1921, 2026 annual report on file. The generated name returned 20 neighbouring names. | ||
Consolidated Edison Company of New York: one active record, first filed 10 November 1884. | ||
Formation date and agent free; status costs $10. The first result click reloaded an empty form. | ||
Publix Super Markets: incorporated in Florida, 10-Q filed 3 August 2026. | ||
12 Florida entities for a Publix search; formation date and officers need a login. | ||
Security check before the search page. | ||
$1.00 fee for each search. |
Seven tools, one session, public names: a snapshot of access and behaviour on the test date, not a benchmark.
The Source Register Rule: Confirm a company's status on the register of the state that issued it, on the day you publish. Treat every copy, including an aggregator page or a screenshot, as a lead.