Is Firstbase legit, or is it a scam?

Let us settle the core question first: a scam does not deliver a real IRS EIN letter and legitimate state formation, and Firstbase does both. You end up with a genuinely registered US LLC or C-Corp, an EIN from the IRS, and your formation documents. That is the opposite of a scam. Firstbase is an established company that has helped form a large number of startups, including many for non-residents.

So why do some reviews sound alarmed? The real, recurring complaints are about billing, not legitimacy: add-on charges stacking past the $399 headline, annual renewals auto-charging after someone thought an emailed cancellation was enough, and slow support during a dispute. These are genuine frustrations worth taking seriously, but they are a customer-service and billing-clarity issue, not evidence of fraud.

The good news is that every one of those issues is avoidable with a short checklist. Screenshot your order summary at checkout so you have a record. Decline add-ons you did not come for. Calendar any renewal date minus 30 days. Cancel recurring services inside the dashboard, not by email. Download your formation documents and EIN letter as soon as they arrive so you always hold your own paperwork.

Firstbase is a strong fit if you want a lean, banking-ready one-time formation and you are comfortable reading the order summary carefully. It is a weaker fit if you want everything bundled into one subscription with hands-on accounting, in which case a service like Doola may suit you better. Neither choice is a trust problem; it is a fit problem.

In short: legit company, real deliverables, avoidable billing friction. Go in with the checklist above and you get exactly what you paid for, a properly formed US company that you own.