Is an EIN really free? How do I get one?

Yes. An EIN — the federal ID number for your business — is free, from the IRS, on the IRS website, usually issued in minutes. There are whole businesses built on charging people $75–$300 to "process" a free form. Don't be their customer.

Why you want one even as a one-person shop: it's what a bank asks for when you open a business account, and it keeps your Social Security number off the W-9s you hand to anybody who pays you. It's the difference between handing strangers your business's number and handing them yours.

One honest wrinkle: the application asks for a "responsible party," and that's you — it's your legal act, tied to your identity, which is why nobody can honestly do it for you. In a barn raising we prep the whole thing and walk you through the minutes it takes; the signature stays yours.