OPC vs Private Limited vs Proprietorship

The solo-founder version of this decision. Here's how the three compare when there's no co-founder in the picture.

	Proprietorship	LLP	Private Limited
Liability protection	None — you and the business are legally the same.	Yes — limited to your investment in the company.	Yes — same protection as OPC, with room for more shareholders.
Compliance burden	Lowest — minimal ongoing filings.	Moderate — lighter than a Private Limited Company, but real annual filings.	Highest — board meetings, ROC filings, audits past a threshold.
Raising funding	Not realistic.	Limited — must convert to Pvt Ltd once thresholds are crossed, or to raise equity.	Standard — the structure investors expect.
Cost & time to set up	Fastest, cheapest.	Moderate.	Highest, though still fast in practice.
Best for	Solo founders testing an idea with genuinely low risk.	Solo founders wanting real liability protection without full company compliance yet.	Solo founders who already know they'll raise funding or add shareholders.

You're solo, the risk is genuinely low, and you want the fastest, simplest way to start invoicing.

You're solo but want real liability protection now, without bringing on a co-founder just to incorporate.

You're solo today but already know you'll raise funding or bring on shareholders soon — incorporating directly saves a conversion step.

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