Massachusetts Business Entity Search
Find a registered business through Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth, Corporations Division. Use the official link below, then check the search options and name rules for Massachusetts.
Official website: corp.sec.state.ma.us · Opens in a new tab
Massachusetts search options and record coverage
Massachusetts Corporate Database Search locates corporations, LLCs, and other registered entities by entity name or identification number and displays status, resident agent, office, managers or officers where filed, annual reports, and documents. Online filings use a CID/PIN or the entity record. Search is primarily legal-name/ID based; inspect the returned record rather than assuming a separate agent-name filter exists.
Checking a business name in Massachusetts
Massachusetts requires entity names to be distinguishable in the Corporations Division record and to contain the appropriate legal designator. A difference only in capitalization, punctuation, spacing, generic words, or entity suffix should not be assumed to cure similarity. Approval is not a trademark, business-certificate, professional-license, or unfair-competition clearance.
Massachusetts name reservations
Massachusetts corporation and LLC name reservation/transfer costs $30.00. The corporation page states a 60-day reservation period. A reservation is optional filing priority and does not clear trademarks, assumed names, professional restrictions, or licensing; a name can remain legally risky even after the Corporations Division accepts it.
DBA, trade names, and fictitious names
Massachusetts generally registers a business certificate/DBA through the city or town clerk where the business operates, not through the Secretary of the Commonwealth's entity registry. The state Corporations Division page is https://www.sec.state.ma.us/divisions/corporations/; local clerk fees and renewal periods control. A business certificate does not change the legal entity name or create limited liability.
What do you need after the search?
- Official proof of standing — find certificate fees and ordering instructions.
- A missed report or inactive registration — check deadlines and reinstatement rules.
- A new business registration — compare Massachusetts formation and filing fees.