Softwr

Agriculture · head to head

Gallagher eShepherd vs MyJohnDeere

Gallagher eShepherd logo

Gallagher eShepherd

Agriculture

Virtual fencing where you own the solar collars outright and pay only a small monthly connectivity fee

From
On request
Rated
-
MyJohnDeere logo

MyJohnDeere

Agriculture

Connected farm management by John Deere

From
$29/month
Rated
-

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Gallagher eShepherd gallagher does not publish neckband prices, quoting instead by herd size, region and connectivity type, so the ownership-versus-lease advantage over subscription rivals cannot be verified without a sales conversation.; MyJohnDeere myJohnDeere is now branded John Deere Operations Center; access to the actual platform (myjohndeere.deere.com) requires an Okta single sign-on login with no public trial or pricing path, per the vendor's own marketing page and login redirect.
  • They diverge on capability: Gallagher eShepherd covers Map-drawn virtual paddocks, MyJohnDeere covers Equipment connectivity.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Gallagher eShepherd and MyJohnDeere actually diverge.

Attributes where Gallagher eShepherd and MyJohnDeere differ
AttributeGallagher eShepherdMyJohnDeere
Starting priceOn request$29/month
Pricing modelquotesubscription
FoundedUnknown1837

Identical on both: free tier (No), platforms (Web, iOS, Android), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Agriculture).

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 Gallagher eShepherd

  • Map-drawn virtual paddocks
  • Audio cue then pulse
  • Solar neckband
  • Cellular or LoRa connectivity
  • Animal location tracking
  • Grazing rotation management
  • Exclusion zones
  • Behaviour alerts

Only in MyJohnDeere

  • Equipment connectivity
  • Operations Center
  • Variable rate
  • Field analyzer
  • AutoTrac
  • Climate FieldView
  • Granular
  • Raven

What people use each for

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

Gallagher eShepherd

  • A ranch subdividing a 2,000 acre paddock for rotational grazing without buying a mile of wirenot MyJohnDeere
  • A grazier fencing cattle out of a creek line for a stewardship scheme without building riparian fencenot MyJohnDeere
  • An operation on leased ground where permanent fencing is not permitted or not recoverablenot MyJohnDeere
  • A farm short of labour that needs paddock moves done from a phone rather than a quad bikenot MyJohnDeere

MyJohnDeere

  • Equipment managementnot Gallagher eShepherd
  • Data integrationnot Gallagher eShepherd
  • Precision farmingnot Gallagher eShepherd

Where each one falls short

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

Gallagher eShepherd

  • Gallagher does not publish neckband prices, quoting instead by herd size, region and connectivity type, so the ownership-versus-lease advantage over subscription rivals cannot be verified without a sales conversation.
  • A minimum of about 20 animals is needed to train a mob, which rules out smallholders and makes the system awkward for operations that run many small separate groups.
  • It is cattle only: sheep, goats and deer are not supported, so a mixed grazing enterprise still needs conventional fencing for everything else.
  • The connectivity fee is per active neckband and continues indefinitely, so the collars are yours but the system stops fencing if you stop paying, which is the same dependency as a subscription with a different label.
  • Virtual fencing is regulated inconsistently: some jurisdictions restrict or have not yet ruled on aversive-stimulus containment, and welfare-scheme or organic certifier acceptance varies, so eligibility should be checked locally before ordering.

MyJohnDeere

  • MyJohnDeere is now branded John Deere Operations Center; access to the actual platform (myjohndeere.deere.com) requires an Okta single sign-on login with no public trial or pricing path, per the vendor's own marketing page and login redirect.

Pricing, plan by plan

Gallagher eShepherd

On request
  • eShepherd neckband$undefined/year
    • Neckbands purchased outright, not leased per head
    • Small fixed monthly connectivity fee per active neckband
    • Fees charged only on active bands

MyJohnDeere

$29/month
  • BasicFree
    • Equipment connectivity
    • Basic data
    • JDLink
  • Premium$1200/year
    • Full Operations Center
    • Advanced analytics
    • Prescriptions

Which should you pick?

Choose Gallagher eShepherd if

  • You need map-drawn virtual paddocks.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want audio cue then pulse.

Choose MyJohnDeere if

  • You need equipment connectivity.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want operations center.

Questions people ask

Is Gallagher eShepherd or MyJohnDeere better?
Neither clearly leads. Gallagher eShepherd starts at On request and MyJohnDeere at $29/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Gallagher eShepherd or MyJohnDeere?
Gallagher eShepherd starts at On request and MyJohnDeere at $29/month.
Does Gallagher eShepherd or MyJohnDeere run on more platforms?
Gallagher eShepherd runs on Web, iOS, Android. MyJohnDeere runs on Web, Ios, Android.
What is Gallagher eShepherd best used for?
Gallagher eShepherd is most often used for a ranch subdividing a 2,000 acre paddock for rotational grazing without buying a mile of wire, a grazier fencing cattle out of a creek line for a stewardship scheme without building riparian fence, an operation on leased ground where permanent fencing is not permitted or not recoverable, a farm short of labour that needs paddock moves done from a phone rather than a quad bike. Of those, a ranch subdividing a 2,000 acre paddock for rotational grazing without buying a mile of wire and a grazier fencing cattle out of a creek line for a stewardship scheme without building riparian fence are not what MyJohnDeere is typically brought in for.
What can Gallagher eShepherd do that MyJohnDeere cannot?
Gallagher eShepherd covers Map-drawn virtual paddocks, Audio cue then pulse, Solar neckband, Cellular or LoRa connectivity. MyJohnDeere covers Equipment connectivity, Operations Center, Variable rate, Field analyzer.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Gallagher eShepherd: Do I lease the collars or own them?

You buy them outright. The ongoing cost is a small monthly connectivity fee per active neckband, not a per-head lease.

Gallagher eShepherd: Do I need base stations?

Not with the cellular version, which uses existing mobile networks. The LoRa version needs small on-property base stations and suits areas with poor coverage.

Gallagher eShepherd: How many cattle do I need?

At least 20 to train a mob, after which groups can be split into smaller mobs as long as each contains leaders and followers.

Gallagher eShepherd: Does it work for sheep?

No. eShepherd is a cattle system.

Share

Related pages

Other head to heads