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Veterinary · head to head

Shepherd vs TheraNest

Shepherd logo

Shepherd

Veterinary

Cloud veterinary practice management built by a practising vet

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
TheraNest logo

TheraNest

Healthcare

Mental health EHR and practice management priced per therapist

From
$29/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Shepherd quote-only pricing with no published rates; TheraNest the Essentials plan includes no insurance claims at all, so any practice that bills a payer is effectively on the 59 USD tier or above and the advertised 29 USD entry price does not apply to it.
  • They diverge on capability: Shepherd covers Consultation-first records, TheraNest covers Progress notes and treatment plans.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Shepherd and TheraNest actually diverge.

Attributes where Shepherd and TheraNest differ
AttributeShepherdTheraNest
Starting priceOn request$29/month
Pricing modelquotePer user per month
PlatformsWeb, CloudWeb, iOS, Android
CategoryVeterinaryHealthcare

Identical on both: 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 Shepherd

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

Only in TheraNest

  • Progress notes and treatment plans
  • Insurance claims
  • Client portal
  • Telehealth
  • Group and family sessions
  • Payroll and staff reporting

What people use each for

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

Shepherd

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

TheraNest

  • A solo therapist who needs a HIPAA aligned note and scheduling system and does not bill insurance, where the 29 USD entry tier is genuinely sufficientnot Shepherd
  • A group practice of six to twenty clinicians that wants per clinician productivity and payroll reporting without buying a separate practice management layernot Shepherd
  • A practice moving off paper or a general purpose calendar that needs a client portal for intake forms and consent signaturesnot Shepherd
  • A behavioural health organisation that bills a steady volume of insurance claims each month and can size the Advanced allowance against its actual claim countnot Shepherd

Where each one falls short

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

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

TheraNest

  • The Essentials plan includes no insurance claims at all, so any practice that bills a payer is effectively on the 59 USD tier or above and the advertised 29 USD entry price does not apply to it.
  • Telehealth is only in the Premier plan, so a practice that wants video sessions pays 89 USD per therapist per month even if it needs nothing else from that tier.
  • An annual AMA CPT licence fee is billed separately each December on top of subscription cost, which surprises practices that budgeted only the monthly figure.
  • Additional administrative users are chargeable, so a practice with front desk and billing staff who never see clients still pays 19 to 29 USD per head for people who generate no revenue.
  • The product sits inside a consolidated portfolio that has already renamed the parent company from Therapy Brands to Ensora Health, and product investment in a portfolio is directed by the owner rather than by this product line, so roadmap commitments are worth less than they would be from a single product vendor.

Pricing, plan by plan

Shepherd

On request

No published plan breakdown. See the Shepherd review.

TheraNest

$29/month
  • Essentials$29/month
    • Per therapist
    • Scheduling and client portal
    • HIPAA aligned notes and documentation
  • Advanced$59/month
    • Per therapist
    • 30 insurance claims per month included
    • Custom forms
  • Premier$89/month
    • Per therapist
    • Unlimited insurance claims
    • Billing automation

Which should you pick?

Choose Shepherd if

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

Choose TheraNest if

  • You need progress notes and treatment plans.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want insurance claims.
TheraNest review

Questions people ask

Is Shepherd or TheraNest better?
Neither clearly leads. Shepherd starts at On request and TheraNest at $29/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Shepherd or TheraNest?
Shepherd starts at On request and TheraNest at $29/month.
Does Shepherd or TheraNest run on more platforms?
Shepherd runs on Web, Cloud. TheraNest runs on Web, iOS, Android.
What is Shepherd best used for?
Shepherd is most often used for practices losing revenue to treatment delivered but never billed, clinics replacing on-premise legacy systems, independent practices wanting something designed around clinical work rather than administration. Of those, practices losing revenue to treatment delivered but never billed and clinics replacing on-premise legacy systems are not what TheraNest is typically brought in for.
What can Shepherd do that TheraNest cannot?
Shepherd covers Consultation-first records, Charges from treatment, Inventory, Cloud-based. TheraNest covers Progress notes and treatment plans, Insurance claims, Client portal, Telehealth.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Shepherd: What does Shepherd cost?

Pricing is quoted per practice and not published.

TheraNest: Is TheraNest still sold under that name?

Yes. The company rebranded from Therapy Brands to Ensora Health and the product is now marketed as TheraNest by Ensora Health, but you still buy TheraNest.

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.

TheraNest: Can I bill insurance on the cheapest plan?

No. Essentials includes no claims. Advanced includes 30 claims a month and Premier is unlimited.

Shepherd: Is it cloud-only?

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

TheraNest: Are there hidden costs?

Two. Additional admin users are charged per head, and an AMA CPT licence fee is billed annually in December per therapist.

TheraNest: Does it support group practices?

Yes, with per clinician reporting and payroll figures, though every clinician and every admin is a paid seat.

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