Texas Business Name Search
Search the state's records free, check the naming rules, and generate alternatives when your first choice is gone.
Searching for a Business Name in Texas
Texas is the one state on this list where the obvious search is not the free one. SOSDirect, the Secretary of State's own portal, charges a fee per search — but the Comptroller of Public Accounts runs a Taxable Entity Search that covers registered entities at no cost, and for a first availability check it answers the same question.
Neither search decides anything. Texas applies a distinguishability standard when it examines your certificate of formation, so a name can return nothing in both databases and still be refused for being too close to something on file. The rules below are what the examiner applies.
Free search first
The Comptroller's Taxable Entity Search costs nothing. Use SOSDirect when you need the official record, not for a first look.
Wide suffix choice
Texas accepts LLC, L.L.C., LC, L.C., Limited Liability Company and Limited Company — more latitude than most states allow.
120 days of reservation
The longest hold of the big states except Ohio, and useful when a filing is weeks away.
How to Search Texas Business Names
Start with the free Comptroller search
The Taxable Entity Search run by the Comptroller of Public Accounts covers entities registered in Texas and costs nothing. For a first availability check it tells you what you need without a per-search charge.
Search the distinctive words, not the full name
Drop the suffix and search the identifying part. "Lone Star Roasting LLC" and "Lone Star Roasting Inc." collide in the state's eyes, and only a suffix-free search finds both.
Try the variants an examiner would collapse
Plurals, numerals against spelled-out numbers, and near-respellings. Texas does not treat punctuation, spacing or a different entity suffix as making a name distinguishable.
Use SOSDirect for the official record, then reserve or file
When you want the Secretary of State's own record, SOSDirect is the authoritative source and charges a per-search fee. A name reservation then holds an available name for 120 days, or you can claim it directly by filing the certificate of formation.
Pro tip: Do not pay for a search until you need the official record. The Comptroller's free search will rule out most candidates, and SOSDirect is worth its fee only for the name you have actually settled on.
Search Texas Business Records
The Secretary of State's portal is the authoritative record. We hold no copy of it and make no availability claim of our own — only the state decides whether a name clears.
Nametastic is not a law firm and this is not legal advice. We hold no registry records and cannot tell you whether a name is available — only the state can. Naming rules change; confirm the current requirements with the office linked above before you file.
Texas LLC Naming Rules
What the Secretary of State requires of an LLC name. Confirm current requirements with the state before filing.
| Do | Not this | |
|---|---|---|
| Entity suffix | End with Limited Liability Company, Limited Company, LLC, L.L.C., LC or L.C. | Leave the suffix off, or use a corporate suffix on an LLC |
| Abbreviating the suffix | Use "Ltd." for Limited and "Co." for Company where you prefer the shorter form | Invent an abbreviation the statute does not list |
| Distinguishability | Change the distinctive words so the name reads as a different business | Rely on punctuation, spacing or the entity type to separate it |
| Restricted words | Check whether bank, trust, college, university or similar need another agency's consent | Assume a clear search means a restricted word is allowed |
| Assumed names | File an assumed name certificate if you will trade under anything other than the registered name | Treat the entity registration as covering a DBA |
Clearing a Texas Name Without Paying Twice
- 1
Free search first, paid search last
Run every candidate through the Comptroller's free search and shortlist there. Pay for SOSDirect once, on the name you intend to file.
- 2
Use the suffix latitude
Texas accepts more suffix forms than most states. If "Limited Company" or "LC" reads better than "LLC" for your brand, Texas is one of the places you can actually choose.
- 3
120 days is long enough to be worth it
Where a 60-day reservation often expires before a filer is ready, Texas gives you four months. If funding or a partner agreement is the hold-up, reserving is genuinely useful here.
- 4
Check the domain while you are at it
The state does not care whether the domain exists; you will. Run both checks together — the generator above shows live domain availability with each name.
- 5
Have a second name you actually like
Distinguishability is the examiner's call. Filers who arrive with one name and no fallback are the ones who wait through a second cycle.