Finance and accounting decision
Firstbase
A technical user can build a narrow MVP that generates incorporation documents, prepares filings, and helps obtain an EIN, but reproducing Firstbase's full paid product (registered agent, mailroom, bank integrations, bookkeeping/tax filing, and partner network) is not realistic for a solo developer.
Visit website↗Open-source builds that already do this
Every project below is open source and already does this job today. Fork one, self-host it, or take the parts you need — the build prompt further down assumes an empty file, and this is the shortcut past that. Licences differ; check the one on each card before you ship.
What a replacement has to do
- Collect founder & company info, generate state filing & incorporation documents, submit EIN (SS-4) application support, produce downloadable post‑incorporation documents, and email paperwork to the user.
What it still won’t have
- Registered agent service and annual state filings (automated filing on user's behalf)
- Physical mail handling / premium US mailbox
- Integrated bank account onboarding with partners
- Full-service bookkeeping, tax filing, and human expert support
- Access to Firstbase partner rewards and VC discovery network
What remains hard
- Product polish and ongoing maintenance
First-year cost
Keep paying
Paying is—cheaper in year one.
On cash alone, building overtakes the subscription at 1 seat.
Money you would actually spend
Time you would spend
—
What you would spend
What we assumed
The verdict above measures whether you could build it. This one is only about money.
Runnable build prompt
Build a minimal web service in Node.js (Express) + PostgreSQL + React that allows a founder to incorporate an LLC: provide a validated multi-step intake form, generate templated incorporation documents (operating agreement, bylaws, stock purchase, SS-4) as PDFs, create a state filing packet (PDF) from inputs, provide an EIN (SS-4) preparation workflow and status notes, and a dashboard delivering generated PDFs and email notifications. Out of scope: acting as a registered agent, automated filings to every state's e-file APIs, bank integrations, premium mailroom. Include input validation, error handling, retries for external requests, audit logging, and unit + integration tests. Deploy to a single small cloud VM and configure TLS and backups.
How we checked
How the score was reached
- Partly verdict base52
- An open-source build was found+5
- 5 cited sources+3
- Price verified on pricing page+3
- Evidence score63
The base comes from the verdict. Everything under it is a check that either happened or did not, and each one is a fact frozen in this record rather than a judgement made at render time — so the same evidence always produces the same number.
How scoring works →Cited sources · 5
Every page the run actually retrieved.
- official productFirstbase (homepage)
- official pricingFirstbase Pricing
- official docsFirstbase Start (features)
- open sourcemayswind/ezbookkeeping
- open sourceandrewdwallo/erpsaas
Integrity checks
What held up, and what did not.
