Colorado Business Entity Search

Check your name against Colorado law before you file. The state's search tells you whether a name exists. It does not tell you whether yours is legal, or whether it is too close to one already on the register. This does both.

Search the official Colorado register Form this LLC for $399

What this does not check

  • • Whether the name is already taken. That needs the state’s live register, which we link below.
  • • Trademarks. A name can be free on the state register and still infringe a federal or common law mark.
  • • Domain and social handle availability.
  • • Whether the name is available in any other state you later register in.

Colorado LLC naming rules

C.R.S. § 7-90-601 and C.R.S. § 7-90-601

Your name must include one of

  • Limited Liability Company
  • Ltd. Liability Company
  • Limited Liability Co.
  • Ltd. Liability Co.
  • Limited
  • L.L.C.
  • LLC
  • Ltd.

Your name must not

When is a name too close to one already registered?

This is what catches most filings. Colorado compares your name against what is already on the register, and a difference that looks obvious to you may not count.

These do not make a name different

  • • Periods, commas, underscores, apostrophes and inverted apostrophes
  • • Uppercase versus lowercase letters
  • • Worked examples: "ABC Inc" is the same as "abc inc", "A.B.C. Inc" and "ABC, Inc."

These do

  • • The entity type term or abbreviation DOES make a name distinguishable: "ABC LLC" is not the same as "ABC Limited Liability Company", and "ABC LLC" is not the same as "ABC INC"
  • • Articles such as "the" and "a" DO make a name distinguishable
  • • Spaces, hyphens and parentheses DO make a name distinguishable: "ABC LLC" is not the same as "A B C LLC", "A-B-C LLC" or "(ABC) LLC"

Our comparison cannot judge: Repeated or dropped letters. Texas treats "Texxas Strong" as the same name as "Texas Strong". Words that sound alike. Texas treats "Xpress Auto" as the same as "Express Auto". Words that mean the same thing in another language, where the state translates them. Anything the filing officer decides at their own discretion, which every state reserves.

Searching the official register

  • • There are two searches and they answer different questions. The Name Availability Search tells you whether one exact name is available but shows no similar names. The business database search shows similar names but does not tell you whether a name is available
  • • Enter the exact name, including the designator, in the Name Availability Search, because the designator itself affects availability in Colorado
  • • Trade names and trademarks are not included in the name availability search, and any trade name may be registered even if it matches another name on record
  • • A name reservation lasts 120 days and can be renewed
  • • When an entity is dissolved, withdrawn or becomes delinquent, Colorado appends a word such as "Delinquent" or "Dissolved" to its name, and the original name becomes available for someone else to use
  • • Colorado law does not let one business transfer its name to another. The holder must change its name or dissolve to free it

Exceptions worth knowing

  • • Only characters printed on a standard QWERTY keyboard can be used in a name, because the filing system accepts nothing else

Colorado Secretary of State

Phone
303-894-2200
Address
1700 Broadway, Suite 550, Denver, CO 80290

Colorado business name questions

How do I search Colorado business entity names?

Colorado Secretary of State runs the official register at https://www.coloradosos.gov/biz/NameCriteria.do. Search there for the exact name you want. Before you do, use the checker above to confirm the name satisfies C.R.S. § 7-90-601, because a name can be unused and still be refused for breaking the naming rules.

What must a Colorado LLC name contain?

Under C.R.S. § 7-90-601, the name must include one of: Limited Liability Company, Ltd. Liability Company, Limited Liability Co., Ltd. Liability Co., Limited, L.L.C., LLC, Ltd..

What words are not allowed in a Colorado LLC name?

Colorado does not publish a general prohibited word list for LLC names. Check the statute and the restricted words that need another regulator's consent.

What makes two Colorado business names too similar?

Colorado does not treat these as differences: Periods, commas, underscores, apostrophes and inverted apostrophes; Uppercase versus lowercase letters; Worked examples: "ABC Inc" is the same as "abc inc", "A.B.C. Inc" and "ABC, Inc.". Two names that differ only in those ways are the same name to the filing office.

Does a name search reserve or protect my Colorado name?

No. A search tells you what is on the register at that moment. It is not an approval, and it gives you no rights in the name. Availability is finally determined only when your formation document is reviewed.

Can StartGlobal form my Colorado LLC?

Yes. Formation is $399 one time with all state and government fees included, and it works from anywhere in the world with no SSN and no US address required.

More for Colorado

Check a name in another state

Sources for Colorado

  1. Business Entity Names FAQs (distinguishability, searches, reservations) — Colorado Secretary of State (checked Oct 5, 2026)
  2. Designators: list of terms and abbreviations by entity type — Colorado Secretary of State (checked Oct 5, 2026)
  3. Name Availability Search — Colorado Secretary of State (checked Oct 5, 2026)