How to Conduct a Mississippi Business Entity Search

The Mississippi business entity search is a valuable tool for anyone who wants to learn more about registered businesses in the state. Whether you’re an established business owner who wants to check if a potential business partner is in good standing or a soon-to-be entrepreneur who wants to research name availability, this tool is a go-to resource.

But using this search can feel a little overwhelming, especially if you’ve never used a tool like this before. That’s where this guide comes in; we’ve assembled a step-by-step guide to using the business search. We’ll also talk through some Mississippi business name guidelines and what you should do after searching your business name.

Let’s get started.

Mississippi Secretary of State Contact Information

Jackson Address: 401 Mississippi Street Jackson, MS 39201 601-359-1350	Coast Address: 1141 Bayview Avenue, Suite 120 Biloxi, MS 39530 228-432-0541
Secondary Jackson Address: 125 S. Congress Street Jackson, MS 39201 601-359-1633	Website: https://www.sos.ms.gov/

Mississippi Business Name Guidelines

When you’re starting a business, one of the most important things you’ll do is pick your business name. And like other states, Mississippi has several rules about naming your business. 

First, your name needs to be different from the names of other registered companies in Mississippi, including both domestic and foreign corporations, limited liability companies (LLCs), limited partnerships, and so on. This is one of the simplest but most important naming standards. 

That said, uniqueness isn’t the only naming guideline to adhere to. Here are a few other rules your Mississippi business name should follow: 

• Your business name needs to include a designator. For example, corporations are required to include the word “corporation,” “incorporated,” “company,” “limited,” or an acceptable abbreviation of one of those words. Meanwhile, LLCs need to include the phrase “limited liability company,” “LLC,” or “L.L.C.”
• Your business name can’t state or imply that you’re conducting activities that aren’t permitted by law or by your company’s formation documents.
• Mississippi LLCs may not include words like “corporation,” “bank,” “banking,” “trust,” “insurance,” or similar words in their names.
• LLC names can include the name of a member or manager if they choose to do so.

If you’re in a licensed trade or profession, keep in mind that you’ll need to meet any naming rules that your industry has in place, too. If your business name doesn’t meet these requirements, you’ll need to pick a new one.

How to Run an MS SOS Business Search by Business Name

The Mississippi Secretary of State (SOS) actually provides four primary business search types: by business name, business ID, officer name, or registered agent. We’ll walk you through how to run each search throughout this guide, but in this section, we’ll focus on how to search by business name.

Step 1: Set up your search filters and type your search

To get started, you’ll need to navigate to the search homepage. By default, the search is set to the “Business Name” setting, shown below.

Before you type the business name, you can change the “Search Criteria” setting to change how the tool will retrieve results. Here are your options:

• Starting With: This default setting retrieves business names that begin with the same word(s) as your search terms. For example, if you searched “Smith Construction” using this setting, you’d see names like “Smith Construction & Renovations” and “Smith Construction Co.”
• All Words: This setting acts more like a “Contains” search, retrieving business names that include each word in your search terms. Going back to our “Smith Construction” example, this search’s results list would provide names that include both “Smith” and “Construction” anywhere in the name, such as “Bill Smith Construction” and “Bob Smith Metal Products and Construction.”
• Any Words: This setting will retrieve business names that include just one or all of the words you search somewhere in the name. For instance, with “Smith Construction,” the “Any Words” search would retrieve names like “1 Construction LLC” or “1417 Smith Properties LLC.” It would also show you names like “Smith Construction Co.”
• Sounds Like: This setting is a bit more general, as the tool will retrieve business names that sound somewhat similar to your search terms. This is an especially helpful setting if your business name includes a word that has multiple possible spellings.
• Exact Match: This setting is the most precise option, retrieving business names that are identical to your search terms.

Set the filters to best match your search goals. Then, type your search terms into the search bar and click “Search.”

Step 2: Review your search results

After you click “Search,” the tool will list details for each Mississippi entity that matches your search terms. For example, here’s what our results list looked like when we ran a “Starting With” search of “Smith.”

This first results page will show you the full business name, business ID, business entity type, status, and formation date for each matching business. If you’d like to learn more about a particular business, click on the “Details” button.

The details pop-up window will show you more extensive information about the company, including its current and previous names. You can also view the company’s state of formation, principal office address, the name and address of its registered agent, and any information that the company has provided about its officers and directors.

At the top of this window, you can click on the “View Filed Documents” button to review the company’s filing history. You can also opt in or opt out of email updates for that business. Finally, you can click the “Print Business Details” button to print a copy of these details, if needed.

A Note on Checking Name Availability

If you’re starting a new business in Mississippi, it’s your responsibility to ensure that you have a unique business name. Unfortunately, the state website doesn’t offer a dedicated name availability search tool. That said, you can use the business name search to do some preliminary name checks.

To get started, use the business name search with the “Exact Match” filter. Then, type in your desired business name (leave off a designator like “LLC” or “Inc.”). Ideally, you want to see a message that says “No Matches Found.” But if the tool does find matches, it’ll show you a listing for the conflicting company name. If that happens, you’ll probably need to tweak your name so it’s distinct.

A “No Matches Found” message doesn’t guarantee that your name is available; remember, this is only a preliminary inquiry. While you’re here, it’s a good idea to run a few other searches, such as an “All Words” search with a keyword from your name or a “Sounds Like” search, to see if your name is truly unique. These extra searches can help you find similar names or names with different spellings (if they exist).

How to Search by Business ID

The fastest way to retrieve information about a company is to search by its business ID number. The Mississippi Secretary of State assigns a unique ID number to every company that registers with the Business Services Division, so searching that number will direct you straight to the business you’re looking for.

To get started, navigate to the search homepage. But for this search, you’ll need to click on the “Business ID” tab, shown below.

Next, type the ID number into the search bar and click “Search.”

As long as you typed the number correctly, you’ll be taken directly to the company’s business information page. From here, you can review previous business filings and print out the business details, if needed.

How to Search by Officer Name

If you can’t quite remember the name of a business but you can remember the name of a key person in the business, you can use the officer name search to look up the company’s information. Individuals covered by this search could include a corporation’s director or incorporator, an LLC’s member or manager, and so on.

To do so, navigate to the search homepage and click on the “Officer Name” tab (pictured below).

Next, type in the officer’s name. In response, the tool will pull up a list of businesses with officers with that name. For example, here’s what our results list looked like when we ran an officer search for “John Smith.”

As before, you can click on the “Details” button to review additional information about a company, review its filing history, and more.

How to Search by Registered Agent in Mississippi

Similar to the officer search, a registered agent search allows you to look up a business by the name of its agent. To get started, head to the search homepage. Then click on the “Registered Agent” tab.

Next, type in the agent’s name and click “Search.” In response, the search will pull up all of the businesses in the database that are represented by an agent with that name. For example, here’s what our results list looked like when we searched “John Smith.”

As before, you can click on the “Details” button to review additional information about a particular company.

What to Do After Searching Business Names in Mississippi

After you’ve come up with a name and searched it, you’re probably feeling like you’ve done a lot of legwork. You’d hate for that hard work to go to waste, right? Here are some steps you can take to protect your Mississippi business name and make the most of it. 

Reserve your Mississippi business name (optional)

If you’ve picked the perfect business name but you’re not quite ready to file your business formation paperwork, Mississippi allows you to reserve a business name.

You can file for a name reservation by submitting the name reservation application that matches your business type. Currently, domestic Mississippi corporations and LLCs both pay $25 for this reservation (foreign corporations pay $50).

After your paperwork is filed and approved, your name reservation will be valid for 180 days. If you need more time, you are allowed to renew your reservation once; the renewal must be filed during the final 30 days of the initial registration period. This step is optional, and you should only pursue it if you’ve picked a name but aren’t ready to file your formation paperwork yet.

Form an LLC or register your business

One of the best ways to protect your business name is to register your business. After you register a business under your chosen name, no one else in the state will be able to register their own company with the same name. 

Registering a Mississippi business is an important legal process. Learn more about starting a Mississippi LLC. 

Get a domain name that matches

You want it to be easy for your customers to find your business website. That means you need a domain name that matches your business name as closely as possible. A matching domain will help your brand maintain consistency both in person and online.

If you’re struggling to come up with a domain name (or the one that matches your name is already taken), try using a domain name generator. A generator can help you come up with a domain that matches your brand image. 

Set up your business online

Today, you can’t run a business without a good digital footprint. A good business website is a decent starting point. But don’t stop there; set up social media accounts like a Facebook page, a TikTok profile, and an Instagram account. Make sure your business name is included on each account so your brand is consistent across your online presence.

Last but not least, set up a Google Business Profile for your business (or claim it if it already exists). This profile will help you direct customers to your website or your store location. Plus, it’ll help you respond to customer reviews and build a good brand reputation in the Magnolia State.

Trademark your business name (optional)

If you want the most robust protections for your business name, you could pursue trademark registration. Trademarks can be registered at the state or federal level (with federal protections being the strongest). 

Getting a trademark can be pretty complicated and time-consuming. If you go this route, it’s highly recommended to work with a trademark attorney.