Lookup Directory
Business license lookup & entity search, state by state
Every state runs an official registry where you can search registered businesses, and most run separate lookups for verifying licenses. This directory points you to the official portal for each question, whether you're checking a contractor's license, confirming a supplier is in good standing, or seeing if your preferred business name is taken.
52 jurisdictions covered; 38 include a curated statewide license-verification portal alongside the entity registry.
Pick your state
Each page curates the official entity search, the statewide license lookups worth knowing, and the general-license reality in that state.
Alabama
Alabama Secretary of State Business Entity Records
Alaska
Alaska Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing
Arizona
Arizona Corporation Commission eCorp
Arkansas
Arkansas Secretary of State Business Entity Search
California
California Secretary of State bizfile Online
Colorado
Colorado Secretary of State Business Database Search
Connecticut
Connecticut Secretary of the State Business Records Search
Delaware
Delaware Division of Corporations Entity Search
District of Columbia
DC Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection (CorpOnline)
Florida
Florida Division of Corporations (Sunbiz)
Georgia
Georgia Corporations Division Business Search
Hawaii
Hawaii Business Express document search (DCCA)
Idaho
Idaho Secretary of State Business Search
Illinois
Illinois Secretary of State Business Entity Search
Indiana
Indiana Secretary of State INBiz Business Search
Iowa
Iowa Secretary of State Business Entity Search
Kansas
Kansas Secretary of State Business Entity Search
Kentucky
Kentucky Secretary of State Business Search
Louisiana
Louisiana Secretary of State Commercial Search
Maine
Maine Bureau of Corporations Interactive Corporate Services
Maryland
Maryland Business Express Entity Search
Massachusetts
Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth Corporations Search
Michigan
Michigan LARA Business Entity Search
Minnesota
Minnesota Secretary of State Business Search
Mississippi
Mississippi Secretary of State Business Services
Missouri
Missouri Secretary of State Business Entity Search
Montana
Montana Secretary of State Business Search
Nebraska
Nebraska Secretary of State Corporate Search
Nevada
Nevada Secretary of State Business Entity Search (SilverFlume)
New Hampshire
New Hampshire QuickStart Business Search
New Jersey
New Jersey Business Name Search (Division of Revenue)
New Mexico
New Mexico Secretary of State Business Search
New York
New York Department of State Corporation & Business Entity Database
North Carolina
North Carolina Secretary of State Business Registration Search
North Dakota
North Dakota Secretary of State FirstStop Business Search
Ohio
Ohio Secretary of State Business Search
Oklahoma
Oklahoma Secretary of State Business Entity Search
Oregon
Oregon Secretary of State Business Registry Search
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania Department of State Business Search
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico Department of State Registry of Corporations
Rhode Island
Rhode Island Department of State Corporate Database
South Carolina
South Carolina Secretary of State Business Entity Search
South Dakota
South Dakota Secretary of State Business Filing Search
Tennessee
Tennessee Secretary of State Business Entity Search
Texas
Texas Comptroller Taxable Entity Search
Utah
Utah Division of Corporations Business Search
Vermont
Vermont Secretary of State Business Search
Virginia
Virginia SCC Clerk's Information System
Washington
Washington Secretary of State Corporations Search
West Virginia
West Virginia Secretary of State Business Organization Search
Wisconsin
Wisconsin DFI Corporate Records Search
Wyoming
Wyoming Secretary of State Business Filing Search
What each kind of registry shows
Entity search
The Secretary of State (or equivalent) registry of corporations, LLCs, and partnerships: legal name, status, formation date, registered agent, and usually the filed documents. It proves a company exists and is in good standing, not that it is licensed for its trade.
License lookup
Run by the licensing agency, not the corporate registry. It verifies a specific credential: holder, license number, status, and expiration. States with a statewide general business license (like Washington or Alaska) publish that status here too.
Local licenses
City and county business licenses rarely appear in any statewide search. If a company operates from a storefront, its local license is verified with the city or county clerk directly.
How to verify a license end to end: confirm the entity exists and is in good standing in the entity search, then verify the specific credential in the licensing agency's lookup, then check the local license with the city if the work is location-based. A match on the exact legal name across all three is the standard a bank or general contractor applies.
Need licenses of your own?
Business license requirements by state
Which states actually require a statewide license, and what applies instead where none exists.
Do I need a business license?
A short assessment that turns your states, industry, and footprint into a personalized license checklist.
Business license cost estimator
Regime, agency, and renewal timing per state, with honest "varies" answers where no statewide fee exists.
Business licensing services
We map the licenses your business actually needs, file every one, and keep the renewals on calendar.