Cheyenne Business License: About 50 License Types From $65 to $300, Contractor Classes From $200 and 21 Bar and Grill Licenses From 2023

October 29, 2026

If you are searching for a cheyenne wy business license, start with this: Cheyenne does not issue one general business license. Instead, the City Clerk offers about 50 specific license types, each tied to an activity such as selling food from a cart, running a restaurant, or working as a contractor. Cheyenne has about 66,500 residents (Census 2025), and Wyoming counties issue no business licenses at all. This guide covers the state filings, the city licenses and the tax registrations most new owners need.

Disclaimer: This article is informational, not legal or tax advice. Rules, fees and rates change. Confirm current figures with the named agency before you rely on them, and talk with a qualified attorney or CPA if your situation is complex.

Materials You Will Need

• Your proposed business name, checked for availability
• A Wyoming registered agent with a physical street address in Wyoming, including any suite number
• Your business address, an email address for the entity and a plain description of what you sell or do
• A credit or debit card for online filings. The City Clerk's online portal charges a card fee.
• A list of every product and service you plan to sell, so you can tell which are taxable
• A budget that covers state filing fees, city license fees and the annual report

Step 1: Confirm the Name Is Available

Search the name on the WyoBiz business filing search at https://wyobiz.wyo.gov/Business/FilingSearch.aspx. An LLC name must include Limited Liability Company or an accepted abbreviation such as LLC, L.L.C., LC or Ltd. Liability Company (W.S. 17-29-108). The name must be available and distinguishable from existing entities on the search. Names beginning with the letter A must be filed on paper rather than online.

If you need to hold a name while you prepare paperwork, use the paper LLC Name Reservation form at https://sos.wyo.gov/Forms/Business/General/LLC/LLC-NameReservation.pdf. It costs $60 and holds the name for 120 days. There is no online reservation.

Step 2: File Your Formation Documents With the Secretary of State

For an LLC, file Articles of Organization. For a corporation, file Articles of Incorporation (Profit Corporation). Each carries a $100 filing fee. Online filings through WyoBiz at https://wyobiz.wyo.gov/Business/RegistrationInstr.aspx are active as soon as the filing is completed. Paper filings are processed in the order received and can take up to 15 business days.

Step 3: Appoint a Registered Agent

Every Wyoming entity must continuously maintain a registered agent to accept legal papers. The agent can be an individual Wyoming resident or an authorized business entity, and must have a physical street address in Wyoming. A drop box is not acceptable. A PO box is accepted only in addition to a physical address. The agent signs a Consent to Appointment. Commercial registered agents pay a $50 annual registration. Appointing a new agent and office costs $5.

Step 4: Understand the Annual Report

Wyoming has no corporate income tax, no personal income tax and no franchise tax. The one recurring state entity charge is the annual report license tax, which is $60 minimum. It equals two-tenths of one mill ($.0002) on the dollar of Wyoming assets if that amount is greater. An entity with $300,000 or less in Wyoming assets pays $60. An entity with $1,210,000 in Wyoming assets pays $242.

The report is due the first day of your anniversary month every year. You may file it up to 120 days before the due date. An LLC that does not pay within 60 days of the due date is subject to administrative dissolution, and a corporation faces dissolution if it remains unpaid after 60 days.

Step 5: Register a Trade Name (Optional)

If you will operate under a name other than your legal name, you can register a trade name with the Wyoming Secretary of State, Business Division. It is filed statewide, not with the county clerk. Registration costs $100 for a 10 year term, renewal is $50, assignment is $25 and cancellation is $10. Trade name applications are mail-only and must be notarized. Use the form at https://sos.wyo.gov/forms/business/tn/tn-registrationapplication.pdf. A trade name reservation is $30 and holds the name for 120 days.

Step 6: Register for a Sales and Use Tax License if You Sell Taxable Items

Businesses making taxable sales must hold a sales and use tax license from the Wyoming Department of Revenue, Excise Tax Division. The application carries a $60 non-refundable fee. Apply at https://excise-tax-div.wyo.gov/salesuselodging-tax/salesuselodging-registration, and find general information at https://excise-tax-div.wyo.gov/.

The state sales tax rate is 4%. Laramie County's sales and use tax rate is 5% under the Department of Revenue rate chart effective 2026-10-01, and it rises to 6% on 2027-01-01. Cheyenne has no city sales tax. County rates change, so check the Department of Revenue rate chart before you set prices or collect tax.

What Is Taxable

• Taxable: meals and prepared food, lodging, admissions, telecom, utilities, alcohol, repair and alteration of personal property, and oil and gas well-site services
• Exempt: intrastate freight and food for home consumption, including most baked goods

Lodging adds the 5% statewide lodging assessment and Laramie County's 2% county lodging tax on top of the sales rate, which brings the combined lodging rate to 12% now and 13% from 2027-01-01. Confirm the lodging figure on the rate chart before you publish rates.

Contractors pay sales tax on the materials they install. Wyoming issues no resale certificate. Instead, the buyer gives the seller a signed certificate. A remote seller must register once its sales reach $100,000, a threshold that counts sales only.

Step 7: Get the City License for Your Activity

Wyoming has no general statewide business license. The Secretary of State directs applicants to the City Clerk in the city where they will operate. In Cheyenne, the City Clerk is at 2101 O'Neil Ave, Room 101, and can be reached at 307-637-6330. Apply through the online portal, which charges a card fee. Ask the Clerk whether a license or permit applies before you open, because the Clerk's list includes about 50 license types.

The fees below were checked in October 2026. Most run from $65 to $300, with vending machines at a $35 minimum. Confirm current amounts on the Clerk's page before paying.

License	Fee
Auctions	$135
Barber or beauty shop	$65
Bed and breakfast	$65
Billiards	$75 / $100 (confirm with the Clerk which applies)
Body art establishment, artist	$165 establishment, $75 artist
Bowling	$135
Burglar alarm	$100
Carnival	$200 per day
Christmas trees	$80 per 30 days
Comprehensive temporary merchant	$300
Detective, patrol or guard	$140
Door-to-door	$100 per 14 days plus $15 per badge
Firearms dealer	$90
Food wagon, stand, pushcart or mobile	$75 per site, $50 per 14 days, non-profit $25
Fuel dispensing	$65
Garage or auto dealer	$65
Massage establishment, therapist	$135 establishment, $115 therapist
Mobile home park	$115
Nicotine retailer	$65
Pawnbroker	$155
Pedicab	$115
Recycling	$65
Restaurant	$115
Salvage or junk	$115
Secondhand	$80
Sidewalk cafe	$90
Skating rink	$135
Taxicab, driver	$115 vehicle, $25 driver
Temporary or transient merchant	$100 per 14 days
Theater	$130
Towing	$90
Tree maintenance	$90
Vending machines	$35 minimum

Step 8: Check Contractor Licensing

Wyoming has no state contractor, plumber or HVAC license. Cheyenne licenses contractors under the Contractor Licensing Board rules revised 3/10/2026. The state licenses electrical trades through the Department of Fire Prevention and Electrical Safety.

Class	Fees
Class A	$50 application, $600 initial, $200 renewal
Class B	$400 and $100
Class C1	$200 and $75
Class C2	$200 and $50
Handyman Class D	$200 initial, $50 to $150 renewal

For Classes B, C1 and C2 the fee list shows two figures without labels. Confirm with the City Clerk which figure applies to initial licensing and which applies to renewal before you budget.

Step 9: Check Liquor, Short-Term Rental and Home Food Rules

Retail liquor licenses are population quota licenses issued by cities, towns and counties. Cheyenne's bar-and-grill cap is 21 since 2023-07-01 and rises to 29 from 2028-07-01 under W.S. 12-4-413, based on the 2020 census. The open count changes, so ask the City Clerk how many are available before you sign a lease.

For a short-term rental, confirm the license requirements with the City Clerk before you list the property.

Wyoming's Food Freedom Act (W.S. 11-49) lets home producers sell homemade food directly to informed end consumers without a state license, up to its annual caps. Food sold from a cart, stand or truck in Cheyenne still needs the city license listed above.

Step 10: Confirm Workers' Compensation Coverage

Wyoming's workers' compensation system is a monopolistic state fund run by the Department of Workforce Services. Coverage is compulsory only in listed extrahazardous industries. Sole proprietors, partners, officers and LLC members are excluded unless they elect coverage. Check whether your industry is listed before you hire.

Tips and Common Mistakes

• Going to the county for a business license. Counties issue none. Counties handle land use, building, septic and liquor matters.
• Assuming a city license replaces state filings. The Secretary of State and the Department of Revenue are separate steps.
• Trying to reserve an LLC name online. The reservation is paper only.
• Using a drop box as your registered agent address. Add a physical street address.
• Selling taxable items before the sales and use tax license is in place, or failing to collect tax on taxable services.
• Setting up state income tax withholding. Wyoming has no state income tax, so there is nothing to withhold at the state level.
• Missing the annual report. Put the anniversary month on your calendar the day you file.

Expected Results

Completing these steps in order may leave you with an entity that appears as active on WyoBiz, a registered agent on file, a sales and use tax license if you need one, and the city licenses that match your activity. Online filings can be active as soon as they are completed, while paper filings can take up to 15 business days. Owners who confirm each fee before paying often avoid delays, though results depend on your business and your city's review.

Get Help

The Wyoming SBDC Network at https://www.wyomingsbdc.org/ offers free business advising. Kenny Overby is the SBDC regional director for Goshen and Laramie counties. The SBA's Wyoming district page is at https://www.sba.gov/district/wyoming. For complex ownership, licensing or tax questions, consult a qualified attorney or CPA.