Most comparisons of these three structures stop at incorporation cost. That is the smallest number in the decision.
What matters is what each one costs you every year afterwards, in filings, in audit, and in the compliance you cannot skip.
The short version
LLP is the cheapest to run and the hardest to raise money into. Private Limited costs more every year and is the only one an investor will take seriously. OPC sits in between and converts into a Private Limited later, which is often the real plan.
What you file each year
Private Limited Company
- AOC-4 — financial statements, within 30 days of the AGM
- MGT-7 or MGT-7A — annual return, within 60 days of the AGM
- ADT-1 — auditor appointment, within 15 days of the AGM
- DIR-3 KYC Web — every director, by 30 June, once every three financial years
- DPT-3 — return of deposits and non-deposit receipts, by 30 June
- Board meetings, general meetings, statutory registers and minutes
- Statutory audit is mandatory from day one, whatever your turnover
One Person Company
Broadly the same list, with the load reduced:
- No AGM — AOC-4 is due within 180 days of the financial year end
- MGT-7A, the abridged return
- Fewer board meetings required
- Statutory audit still mandatory
LLP
- Form 11 — annual return, by 30 May
- Form 8 — statement of account and solvency, by 30 October
- DIR-3 KYC Web for designated partners holding a DIN — once every three financial years, by 30 June
- Audit only above thresholds — turnover above ₹40 lakh or contribution above ₹25 lakh
- No board meetings, no statutory registers of the company kind
That audit exemption is the single biggest running-cost difference. For a small LLP under the thresholds, you avoid a statutory audit fee every year for the life of the entity.
Where each one actually breaks down
Private Limited — the cost is real but so is the optionality. Audit every year, more filings, more meetings. In return: shares you can issue, ESOPs you can grant, and a structure every investor and acquirer already understands. If there is any chance of raising money, this is the answer and the extra annual cost is the price of that door staying open.
OPC — good for one person, until it isn’t. Limited liability with a lighter load than a Private Limited. But an OPC has one member. The moment you take on a co-founder or an investor, you are converting — and conversion is its own project. Choose it if you are genuinely solo and expect to stay that way for a while.
LLP — cheapest to run, hardest to raise into. No equity to issue, no ESOPs, and most institutional investors will not invest in an LLP. Excellent for professional practices, consultancies and family businesses. Wrong for anything that plans to raise.
The cost people forget
Whichever you pick, the ₹100-per-day late fee applies with no upper limit, and it applies per form.
An LLP that never trades and never files still accrues it. We regularly see dormant entities carrying six-figure additional fees purely because nobody filed a nil return for four years. The cheapest structure to run is only cheap if you actually run it.
And for companies, three continuous years of not filing financial statements or annual returns triggers director disqualification under Section 164(2) — which follows the person to every other board they sit on.
Choosing, in one line each
- Raising money, or might: Private Limited.
- Solo, want limited liability, no investors in view: OPC.
- Professional practice or family business, no equity story: LLP.
- Not sure yet: Private Limited. It is the easiest to explain later, and converting into one is more painful than starting as one.
What we charge to set each up
Published rates, with DSC and government fees billed separately at actuals:
- Private / Public Limited Company — ₹3,999
- One Person Company — ₹3,999
- LLP — ₹3,499
- NGO / Society / Trust / Section 8 Company — ₹4,499
Name approval, DSC and DIN handled end to end, MOA and AOA drafted for your business, and the Certificate of Incorporation, PAN and TAN delivered to you.
Talk it through before you register
Tell us what the business does and where you expect it to be in three years, and we will tell you which structure fits — including when the answer is the cheaper one.
See registration services → · See what each structure owes each year → · +91 92898 96117
General information, not advice for your situation. Thresholds, exemptions and filing requirements change and depend on your specific facts. Take advice before choosing a structure.
