1st Formations Reviews 23,266

TrustScore 5 out of 5

4.8

While we don't verify specific claims because reviewers' opinions are their own, we may label reviews as "Verified" when we can confirm a business interaction took place. Read more

To protect platform integrity, every review on our platform—verified or not—is screened by our 24/7 automated software. This technology is designed to identify and remove content that breaches our guidelines, including reviews that are not based on a genuine experience. We recognise we may not catch everything, and you can flag anything you think we may have missed. Read more

Review summary

Created with AI, based on recent reviews

Looking at 971 reviews, reviewers overwhelmingly had a great experience with this company. Customers consistently praise the seamless and efficient service, highlighting how straightforward and quick the company formation process is from start to finish. Many appreciate the helpful and professional staff, who provide clear guidance and quick responses to questions, making the user experience easy and stress-free. The excellent customer service and prompt communication are frequently mentioned, with people noting the speed at which documents are processed and information is provided. However, some customers experienced dissatisfaction with the service, citing issues with delayed communication and a lack of updates, particularly for non-immigrant services. A few others also felt that their concerns were not adequately addressed, leading to frustration and questioning the value of the service, with some even being refused service after identity verification.

What people talk about most

Service

Clients share positive opinions on service, consistently describing it as efficient, smooth, and... See more

User experience

Customers had positive experiences with user experience, finding the entire process straightforward, fast,... See more

Staff

Reviewers highlight positive aspects of staff, frequently praising their professionalism, efficiency, and... See more

Customer service

Consumers find customer service to be positive, with many reviewers highlighting the responsiveness,... See more

Response time

Users describe positive interactions with response times, highlighting the professionalism and helpfulness of... See more

Reviews shaping this summary

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Great service as always and a Great price. Simple set up and phone advice if you want it. Plenty of good add ons such as UK London Address and call forwarding by your own London number very profession... See more

Company replied

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Our experience with 1st direct. Has been a very positive experience. From start to finish. It was see mless and we were kept informed all the way through the process of getting our company set u... See more

Company replied

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

I have been using 1st Formations for my Limited Liability Partnership since its incorporation in May 2020. Over the last 6 years, their service has been absolutely flawless. Today, they proved on... See more

Company replied

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Excellent service. I have used 1st Formations to set up both my businesses, and I can't fault them. I'm especially impressed by how they don't follow up with loads of promotional emails and calls t... See more

Company replied


Company details

  1. Company Registry
  2. Business Administration Service
  3. Business and IT Consulting Agency
  4. Business Management Consultant
  5. Business to Business Service

About 1st Formations

Written by the company

1st Formations are leading online company formation agents in the UK. We provide a range of formation packages for incorporating companies limited by shares, limited by guarantee and limited liability partnerships.

We also provide a range of address services, including registered office, director's service address and mail-forwarding facilities, with our prestigious location in London's Covent Garden.

If you have any questions please contact us by telephone, e-mail or live online chat, and one of our highly knowledgeable team members will be happy to assist you.

About us

Written by the company


Contact info

4.8

Excellent

TrustScore 5 out of 5

23K reviews

5-star
4-star
3-star
2-star
1-star

Asks customers to review

This company invites their customers to review, whether positive or negative

Replied to 96% of negative reviews

Typically replies within 24 hours

How this company uses Trustpilot

See how their reviews and ratings are sourced, scored, and moderated.

Companies on Trustpilot aren't allowed to offer incentives or pay to hide reviews. Reviews are the opinions of individual users and not of Trustpilot. Read more

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Very helpful

Very helpful, corrections easily made and processed

May 26, 2026
1st Formations logo

Reply from 1st Formations

We are so glad that you are happy with our service, Michael! - Shan at 1st Formations.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Very smooth and easy to use service

Very smooth and easy to use service, lots of great features and support, would definitely use again.

May 8, 2026
1st Formations logo

Reply from 1st Formations

Thank you for your kind review, Chris! We are delighted to hear your feedback - Sophia at 1st Formations

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

Very disappointing experience.

Very disappointing experience.
I placed an order to form a UK company and paid the required fees. After my application was reviewed, I was informed that my order had been cancelled simply because I am a resident of Pakistan. No concerns were raised about my identity, documentation, or the legitimacy of my intended business activities.

What made the experience even more frustrating was that £9.99 + VAT was deducted as an administrative fee, despite no company being formed and no service being provided.

Had it been made clear before payment that residents of certain countries are not accepted under their internal policies, I would never have placed the order. Instead, my application was accepted, payment was taken, and only afterwards was I informed that they could not proceed.

I fully understand the need for compliance checks, but customers should be clearly informed of any country-based restrictions before being charged. The process felt unfair, lacked transparency, and resulted in unnecessary delays and costs.

Unfortunately, based on my experience, I cannot recommend this service.

May 26, 2026
Unprompted review
1st Formations logo

Reply from 1st Formations

Thank you for taking the time to leave us a review.

We are sorry to hear that you were dissatisfied with your experience and appreciate the opportunity to clarify the circumstances surrounding your application.

Following recent updates to our onboarding procedures, we are currently unable to accept new company registrations from certain countries due to compliance, technical, and operational requirements. Unfortunately, Pakistan is one of the jurisdictions that is not currently supported. These restrictions are applied at a policy level and are not a reflection of any individual applicant or business.

As part of our commitment to operating legally, ethically, and responsibly, we apply these requirements consistently across all applications. For this reason, once it was identified that your residential address was located in a non-supported country, we were unable to proceed with the registration and had to cancel the application. This determination was made based solely on eligibility criteria, which is why there was no need to request additional identification or business documentation before reaching a decision.

To help prevent applications from unsupported countries, our payment system is designed to block transactions where the billing address provided corresponds to a restricted jurisdiction. In such cases, customers receive an error message advising that we are unable to process the order. In your case, the payment was able to proceed because the card used was registered to an address in a supported country. It was only during our subsequent review that we identified your residential address as being located in Pakistan and, as a result, were required to cancel the application.

We would also like to clarify that administrative fees are only deducted in specific circumstances where the billing information provided does not accurately reflect the cardholder's residential address. However, once the situation was reviewed and clarified, we offered a full refund of your payment.

To ensure transparency, we maintain a comprehensive list of eligible countries on our website, alongside the payment controls mentioned above, so that prospective customers can confirm their eligibility before submitting an application. We understand this outcome may be disappointing and sincerely apologise for the inconvenience caused.

Thank you again for your feedback; we wish you all the best in your business endeavours.

Kind regards,

Shan Creed
Service Improvement Manager

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Ist formations offer a one-stop place…

Ist formations offer a one-stop place for all businesses' needs, from legal documents to bank account opening; they have you covered. And the best part is that it's delivered in record time. I would recommend anyone to use them for their company registration.

May 19, 2026
1st Formations logo

Reply from 1st Formations

Thank you for your kind review, John! We are delighted that you would recommend us - Sophia at 1st Formations

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

great great customer service honestly…

great great customer service honestly one of the best from any company in service industry

May 25, 2026
1st Formations logo

Reply from 1st Formations

Thank you for your kind review, Daniel! We are so pleased to hear your feedback - Sophia at 1st Formations

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Fast service

Fast service

May 21, 2026
1st Formations logo

Reply from 1st Formations

Thank you for your kind review! - Sophia at 1st Formations

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Love it

Love it
It was easy to manoeuvre
And we got responses fast

May 21, 2026
1st Formations logo

Reply from 1st Formations

Thank you for taking the time to leave us a review, Divine! - Shan at 1st Formations.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Absolutely outstanding service from 1st…

Absolutely outstanding service from 1st Formations from start to finish. The whole company formation process was incredibly quick, straightforward, and stress-free. Everything was clearly explained, the platform was easy to use, and all documents were processed much faster than expected.

Customer support was excellent throughout — professional, responsive, and genuinely helpful with any questions I had. As someone starting a new business venture, they made the entire setup process feel simple and efficient.

I would highly recommend 1st Formations to anyone looking to start a company in the UK. A truly 5-star experience.

May 1, 2026
1st Formations logo

Reply from 1st Formations

We are so glad we could be of help! - Shan at 1st Formations.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Excellent Service for UK Company Formation

I recently used 1st Formations to incorporate a UK company for an independent institutional research business, and the experience has been very smooth so far.

The platform is intuitive, the registration process was straightforward, and the guidance throughout the application was clear and professional. I particularly appreciated the speed of the pre-submission review and the overall efficiency of the incorporation process.

The Covent Garden address services and compliance-related options are also very useful for founders setting up a professional UK presence.

Overall, an excellent experience for entrepreneurs looking to establish a UK limited company quickly and efficiently. Highly recommended.

May 21, 2026
1st Formations logo

Reply from 1st Formations

Thank you for your kind rating! - Shan at 1st Formations.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

Helpful and professional staff

Very friendly staff but didnt get immediate results

May 21, 2026
1st Formations logo

Reply from 1st Formations

Thank you for taking the time to leave us a review, Lynn! - Shan at 1st Formations.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

It’s perfect 🤩

It’s perfect 🤩

May 20, 2026
1st Formations logo

Reply from 1st Formations

You are very welcome, Ahmed. Thank you for your kind review! – Shan at 1st Formations.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

Perfect service from beginning to end

From opening the website, inserting the information, responses from 1st Formation and receiving confirmation from the Companies House, everything perfect and very fast. The verification process was easy and straightforward. Would rate them 10 out of 10 and use them again.

May 20, 2026
1st Formations logo

Reply from 1st Formations

Thank you for your wonderful review, Lucian! - Shan at 1st Formations.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

Seamless UK Company Formation—Highly Recommended.

From start to finish, 1st Formations made the incorporation process straightforward and stress-free. The team was professional, responsive and patient throughout every step. Zineb, George and Verginia were particularly helpful in guiding me through the process. Highly recommend to anyone looking to register a UK company efficiently and with confidence. Thank you to the whole team.

May 19, 2026
1st Formations logo

Reply from 1st Formations

Thank you for taking the time to leave us a review, Mustapha! - Shan at 1st Formations.

The Trustpilot Experience

Anyone can write a Trustpilot review. People who write reviews have ownership to edit or delete them at any time, and they’ll be displayed as long as an account is active.

Companies can ask for reviews via automatic invitations. Labeled Verified, they’re about genuine experiences.

Learn more about other kinds of reviews.

We use dedicated people and clever technology to safeguard our platform. Find out how we combat fake reviews.

Learn about Trustpilot’s review process.

Here are 8 tips for writing great reviews.

Verification can help ensure real people are writing the reviews you read on Trustpilot.

Offering incentives for reviews or asking for them selectively can bias the TrustScore, which goes against our guidelines.

Take a closer look