What address should I use for my business?

When you’re starting your business, you have many decisions to make. Some will be straightforward, and others will seem straightforward, but turn out to be more complicated.

Take your business address, for example. If you have a physical office space or retail location, your business address will likely be the same as where your business is located.

But what if you decide to work from home? What if you are subleasing space or your current location is temporary? Or what if you are a location independent business owner who runs their business operations from wherever they are at the moment. 

One business owner told Nav that she is operating out of a business location where the landlord is unreliable about getting her mail to her. 

“What address should I use to build business credit?” she asked — a question that many entrepreneurs, startups, and small business owners have also wondered. 

This article will help you understand your options so you can choose the right one for your business.

Why your Business Address Matters

Think of your business address as your company’s official “home base.” Even if you work remotely or on the go, your business needs an address to:

• Register your LLC or corporation with your state or get a business license
  
• Open a business bank account and/or business credit card
  
• File taxes with the IRS
  
• Receive legal or government documents
  
• Establish a professional image for customers, lenders, and vendors

Skipping over this step or choosing the wrong type of address can create costly problems later—like being rejected for a loan, getting fined for non-compliance, or exposing your personal address to the public.

Legal Must-haves: What the IRS, Banks, and State Agencies Expect

Every agency has slightly different rules about what counts as an acceptable business address. Here are three times when your address matters:

• State business registration: Many states require a physical street address (not a P.O. Box) to register an LLC or corporation. This can be especially strict when it comes to your registered agent’s address. Check with your Secretary of State or Department of Corporations to learn more.
  
• IRS requirements: You’ll need to give the IRS a physical business address, and a mailing address if different. The IRS may accept a P.O. Box for mail if there’s no street delivery, but they still want to know where the business actually operates.
  
• Banking: Banks require a verifiable physical address to open an account, due to federal “Know Your Customer” rules. Many won’t accept P.O. Boxes or certain virtual addresses that don’t meet their verification checks.

Bottom line: If your address doesn’t meet the strictest requirement—usually the state or bank requirements—you may run into delays, denials, or extra paperwork.

What Are the Different Types of Business Addresses?

There are three main address types you’ll see when setting up your business:

• Principal address: This is your main place of business—where you run day-to-day operations. It might be a residential address, an office, or even a shared workspace in some cases.
  
• Registered agent address: This is where legal documents are delivered for your business entity. It must be a physical address in the state where your business is registered, and someone must be available there during business hours.
  
• Mailing address: This is where you want to receive regular business mail. It can be the same as your principal address, or a separate P.O. Box, private mailbox (like a box in a UPS store, or a virtual mailbox service.
  

Understanding how these work together helps you protect your privacy, meet legal requirements, and stay organized.

Should I Use My Home Address For Business?

Using your home address for your business can be an option in the right circumstances, but there are important caveats.

Using your home address may open up legal liabilities and privacy concerns. Here are a few possible concerns. 

Privacy concerns

Many business documents, like an application for a business bank account will usually require a physical location for your business. If this address is the same as your personal address, it may expose the street address where you live. No one wants a customer showing up at their home uninvited. 

Legal concerns

You may not be allowed to run a home business or home office from your home. If you rent your home, your lease may state that it’s not legal for you to operate a business out of your rented apartment or condo. Even if you own your home or condo, homeowners’ associations can restrict the ways you’re able to use your home. 

Zoning laws may also restrict how you can use your home, although these laws usually pertain to things like building a separate office structure on your property, having more than a specified number of employees, and placing advertisements on your property. The zoning laws are put in place to maintain the residential feel of the neighborhood, so you’ll have to contact the authorities in your city or town to see what is regulated and what is allowed for running an office space out of your home.

In other words, you may not be able to use your home address as your office address depending on local requirements. 

Liability concerns

While home businesses may qualify for a home office tax deduction, when you operate your business from home, you might not want your personal address to be your business address because of liability issues. 

Whether you operate as a limited liability company (LLC), or an S corporation or C corporation, your business entity status can grant you liability protections when you separate your personal life from your business. 

Regardless of your business structure, always check with your homeowner’s insurance to find out whether you need business insurance coverage to operate your business from home. 

Professional image

Having a real street address on your website or your business cards can make your business appear more professional and more legitimate, both of which may be essential for earning new clients and retaining the clients you already have. 

Having a physical address can also help Google send potential clients your way. Because you likely won’t want to display your personal address in public, a separate business address makes sense.

What Is a Virtual Address?

A virtual mailbox may be one option for your business address. A virtual business address provides a separate address to use for your business while the on-site administrators collect, sort, and give you your mail. 

Typically, with one of these services, you can choose to receive your business mail via mail forwarding, on-site pickup, or mail scanning. You’ll get notifications when you receive new mail, and then choose whether to have that mail scanned, shredded, or forwarded. (Junk mail can be discarded.) Pricing for a virtual address for business depends on the service and the company you choose.

You may not be able to use your virtual address as your main office location, though. Many banks and financial institutions will still require a physical address. Again, that may be your home address if you are able to run your business from home.

Should You Use a P.O. Box for Your Small Business Address?

Using a post office box as the mailing address for business may also be an option. If you feel more comfortable handling your mail yourself, a P.O. Box address maintains your privacy and security. You can get a local P.O. Box from the United States Postal Service (USPS) by applying online. 

If you’re looking for a real street address instead of a post office box number, look into the UPS Mailbox service . This service operates similarly to a P.O. Box, but UPS can send you a text to let you know when certain packages arrive, as well as provide 24/7 access rather than only having access during business hours like with a P.O. Box. 

Another option is using the address of your registered agent during business formation . A registered agent service walks you through the process of setting up a new business, and you can often use your agent’s address as your business address. This service is included in your fee.

Another Option: Co-working Spaces

You may be able to find a coworking space that will accept business mail on your behalf.

That’s what Spencer Shaw did. He runs multiple businesses, most recently while traveling the world. For his podcast production services company he has secured an address at a co-working space that receives all the company mail. 

"It's more affordable than a regular full office that we don't need, but more compliant than a UPS store," he explains. "The address is verified by Google and meets requirements for government contracts and other organizations that have stricter verification requirements."

Building Business Credit

Using a business address can help you when establishing your business credit.

Experian is one of the major commercial credit agencies and it “recommends using the address which has been used for any corporation filing, or business license filing, if either have been completed,” says Experian Sr. Product & Marketing Manager Mary Ann Strout. “This will help keep information about your business together. If these filings have not yet been completed, think about the address you will use to complete these filings or to promote your business.”

One risk is that information about a business could get merged with another business at the same address, particularly if the name is very similar. You’ll want to be very careful and consistent if you use the address of a shared office space, for example; always include the full name of your business and the full address, including any box or suite number.

A physical address is preferred when building business credit, but it is possible to avoid using yours.

“Experian promotes physical addresses over virtual addresses, such as P.O. Boxes, if both exist,” Strout advises. “If a business plans to use a P.O. Box (or private Commercial Mail Receiving Agency), however, consistent use of that address will help maintain your business information integrity.”

I have a corporation and have and have worked from home for many years. I've used my home address for legal and tax purposes, and a virtual mailbox for my mailing address. It hasn't hindered me from building strong business credit scores. I was required, however, to enter my home address when applying for my Employer Identification Number (EIN); instructions from the IRS state that filers must “provide the entity’s physical address only if it is different from its mailing address shown in lines 4a–b.”

If you’re going to use your home address as your business address, keep in mind that some localities and homeowner associations may restrict home-based businesses. Those prohibitions aside, you can build business credit using your home address.

And a lender may prefer it.  

“Most business credit providers, including Funding Circle, require a physical address,” says Chris Capecelatro, U.S. director of underwriting at Funding Circle. “This is used to verify your identity among other purposes. A home address is OK as long as the address makes sense for your type of business. For example, a dental practice applying for a loan with only a home address would be atypical and require further clarification.”

Whatever address you decide to use, be consistent when you apply for credit, and update it if it changes.

“Be sure to update your personal and business credit providers if you change addresses,” Capecelatro advises. “Not only will this help ensure that they can communicate with you, but if you apply for additional credit, any discrepancies in the addresses associated with your credit history could introduce delays in the funding process.”

The Bottom Line

If your business doesn't operate from its own physical space, you'll need to figure out how you will handle addresses.

Typically, your business will need a physical address for tax purposes, and to apply for most credit cards, bank accounts or loans. This may be your home address if you operate your business from home. But you may then also use a PO Box or similar type of address for your mailing address. You can then use that mailing address on your website and other places where you don't want to share your home address.

Always consult with your tax and legal professionals to figure out the right solution for your business.