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Healthcare · head to head

Cerner vs Shepherd

Cerner logo

Cerner

Healthcare

Health information technology solutions for healthcare organizations

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Shepherd logo

Shepherd

Veterinary

Cloud veterinary practice management built by a practising vet

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Cerner no published pricing on vendor website; enterprise healthcare software requires custom quotes; Shepherd quote-only pricing with no published rates
  • They diverge on capability: Cerner covers Electronic Health Records, Shepherd covers Consultation-first records.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Cerner and Shepherd actually diverge.

Attributes where Cerner and Shepherd differ
AttributeCernerShepherd
PlatformsWeb, iOS, AndroidWeb, Cloud
CategoryHealthcareVeterinary
Founded1979Unknown

Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (quote), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Cerner

  • Electronic Health Records
  • Revenue Cycle
  • Population Health
  • Patient Engagement
  • HL7
  • FHIR
  • Lab Systems
  • HIPAA

Only in Shepherd

  • Consultation-first records
  • Charges from treatment
  • Inventory
  • Cloud-based

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Cerner

  • Hospital and acute care EHR for chart review and clinical documentationnot Shepherd
  • Mobile clinical access for physicians and care teams on point-of-care devicesnot Shepherd

Shepherd

  • Practices losing revenue to treatment delivered but never billednot Cerner
  • Clinics replacing on-premise legacy systemsnot Cerner
  • Independent practices wanting something designed around clinical work rather than administrationnot Cerner

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Cerner

  • No published pricing on vendor website; enterprise healthcare software requires custom quotes

Shepherd

  • Quote-only pricing with no published rates
  • A smaller vendor than the established systems, with a correspondingly shorter track record
  • Cloud-only, so consultations depend on clinic connectivity

Pricing, plan by plan

Cerner

On request

No published plan breakdown. See the Cerner review.

Shepherd

On request

No published plan breakdown. See the Shepherd review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Cerner if

  • You need electronic health records.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want revenue cycle.
Cerner review

Choose Shepherd if

  • You need consultation-first records.
  • You work on Web, Cloud.
  • You also want charges from treatment.
Shepherd review

Questions people ask

Is Cerner or Shepherd better?
Neither clearly leads. Cerner starts at On request and Shepherd at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Cerner or Shepherd?
Cerner starts at On request and Shepherd at On request.
Does Cerner or Shepherd run on more platforms?
Cerner runs on Web, iOS, Android. Shepherd runs on Web, Cloud.
What is Cerner best used for?
Cerner is most often used for hospital and acute care ehr for chart review and clinical documentation, mobile clinical access for physicians and care teams on point-of-care devices. Of those, hospital and acute care ehr for chart review and clinical documentation and mobile clinical access for physicians and care teams on point-of-care devices are not what Shepherd is typically brought in for.
What can Cerner do that Shepherd cannot?
Cerner covers Electronic Health Records, Revenue Cycle, Population Health, Patient Engagement. Shepherd covers Consultation-first records, Charges from treatment, Inventory, Cloud-based.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Cerner: Does Cerner publish its pricing?

No, Cerner does not publish standard pricing. As an enterprise healthcare EHR vendor (now acquired by Oracle), pricing is customized per healthcare organization based on size, bed capacity, modules required, and implementation scope. Contact Oracle Health for pricing.

Source
Shepherd: What does Shepherd cost?

Pricing is quoted per practice and not published.

Shepherd: What makes it different from other veterinary systems?

It was designed by a practising vet around the consultation workflow, so charges accrue from recorded treatment rather than being entered as a separate billing step.

Shepherd: Is it cloud-only?

Yes, which removes server maintenance and makes connectivity a dependency.

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