Minnesota Business Name Searches & Naming Your LLC

Whether you’re searching for the right Minnesota business name or registering your LLC name with the Minnesota Secretary of State (SOS), we can help. We’ve got all the information you need on how to conduct a Minnesota LLC search, plus business naming rules, assumed names and trademarks.

General Rules for LLC Names

These rules typically apply to all LLCs, regardless of which state they’re formed in.

Your LLC Name Must Be Unique

Your LLC Name Must Not Be Confusable With Another Business Name

It’s not enough for your LLC name to be unique. It also cannot be similar to the name of another LLC or corporation in the state. In addition, you cannot use any of the following features in an attempt to differentiate your business name from that of another business:

Suffixes, such as Corporation, Company, Incorporated, Incorporation, Limited, Corp., Co., Inc., Ltd., LLC, etc.
Articles, such as “A,” “An,” or “The”
The conjunction "And," or “&"
The singular, plural or possessive forms of words
Abbreviations, punctuation, symbols, fonts, typefaces, etc.

Your LLC Name Must Contain Certain Words

Your LLC Name May Have Other General Restrictions

Most states will not allow you to form LLCs with names that:

Are similar to the name of a federal or state agency or organization (e.g., FBI, FDA, Minnesota Comptroller, Minnesota Police, Treasury, etc.)
Suggest affiliation with a federal or state agency or organization
Use the term “Olympic” or any terms that are trademarks of the International Olympic Committee
Imply a purpose that would be illegal for your business to carry out

Specific Rules for Minnesota Business Names

In addition to the general rules listed above, you'll need to follow some Minnesota LLC statutes.

For example:

To be accepted for filing, business names must be different by at least one letter or numeral from other names already on file.
Foreign Trust Association and Special Information names aren’t checked for name availability, nor are they taken into consideration when evaluating name availability of names for other business types.
Trademarks, Service Marks, Collective or Certification Marks cannot be checked for name availability online as this requires a more in depth search by the Office of the Secretary of State to determine whether the name being used by the mark is available.

Coming Up With the Ideal Business Name

Picking the perfect business name can be difficult. We have a complete guide to choosing the right business name, but essentially, you'll want to choose a name that will:

Best represent your product or services
Appeal to your customers
Be memorable enough to stand out
Not be used by any other business in Minnesota

Read Our Guide to Choosing a Business Name

Need help coming up with business name ideas? Try our free name generator.

Get Business Name Ideas

Minnesota Business Entity Search

Once you have an idea of the name you want, you’ll need to perform a Minnesota business search to make sure another business in the state isn’t already using that name.

You can use the state's online portal to perform a name search.

You can also use our simple and convenient Business Name Search tool, which will search the Minnesota business registry for you.

Use Bizee’s Free Tool to Find Out Whether Your Preferred Name is Available for Your LLC in Minnesota

Check Your LLC Name

Trademarks and Service Marks

You must be careful that your Minnesota LLC name doesn’t infringe on the trademark or service mark of another business. The easiest way to ensure you're not infringing is to perform a trademark search through Bizee. If the trademark isn't already in use, you can even register it yourself.

Make Sure Your Business is Starting Off on the Right Foot When It Comes to Intellectual Property.

Let Bizee run a trademark search for you.

Bizee’s Trademark and Registration Service

Minnesota DBA or Assumed Name

You may do business under a name different from your LLC's legal name. While many states refer to this as a trade name, fictitious name or "doing business as" (DBA), Minnesota calls it an assumed name. You may decide to use a Minnesota assumed name for a variety of reasons.

For example, your primary business might be called Minnesota Renewable Resources Holding Company, LLC, and you want to trade as Supreme Solar Panels. You could register an assumed name just for that brand. You'd do that with the Assumed Name form, or you can have Bizee do it on your behalf through our DBA service.

Note: A trade name is not the same as a trademark. Learn more about trademark vs. DBA.

Get a DBA or Assumed Name

Register Your Business Name With the Minnesota SOS

You’ve performed a Minnesota Secretary of State business search, checked availability, followed the naming rules and determined whether you need an assumed name. Now you can register your LLC name in one of two ways.

If you don’t want to form your LLC right now, you can reserve the business name. You’ll need to complete a Request for Reservation of Name form and file it with the Minnesota SOS. The name will be reserved for 12 months. You don’t need to reserve a name if you’re forming your business right away.
If you’re ready to start your LLC, you can indicate your chosen business name when you file your Articles of Organization with the Minnesota SOS. Or you can have Bizee do this for you.

Bizee Can Handle All Your Formation Paperwork With the State of Minnesota for You — And We’ll Do It for Free!

Start your LLC in Minnesota for $0 + State Fee ($155)

Start Your LLC Now

FAQs About Naming Your LLC in Minnesota

How Do I Search for My Minnesota Business Name?

Are There Any Rules for Naming My LLC in Minnesota?

Can I Do Business in Minnesota Under a Different Name Than My LLC Name?

Can I Reserve a Name for My LLC in Minnesota?

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How to Name Your LLC in Minnesota

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