Critical Shifts:
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Structural Reform vs. Payouts: Unlike standard financial class-action payouts, this settlement introduces a structural shift. It legally forces John Deere to share its proprietary diagnostic ecosystem with independent mechanics and farmers on fair and reasonable terms.
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The Software Monopoly Broken: Deere makes the only software capable of handling electronic repairs and component pairing. By keeping these tools exclusive, they held an artificial repair monopoly. Over the next decade, independent providers get parity access to the exact same diagnostic and repair resources as authorized dealers.
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Preventing Retaliation: The agreement explicitly bans Deere dealers from discriminating or retaliating against farmers who bypass dealer networks. Furthermore, if Deere rolls out a new repair tool to over half of its authorized dealers, they are legally required to make it available to the public.
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Fixing "Limp Mode" and ECUs: The mandate specifically targets critical bottlenecks that used to paralyze operations during planting and harvest seasons, including reading and resetting fault codes, reprogramming Electronic Control Units (ECUs) to pair new digital parts, and clearing emissions-related shutdowns.
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The Federal Trade Commission, along with five states, secured an important settlement in an antitrust lawsuit against farm equipment manufacturer Deere & Company that will ensure farmers can enjoy the right to repair their own John Deere tractors and farm equipment.
The FTC’s settlement requires Deere—for the next 10 years and under the supervision of the FTC and plaintiff states—to provide farmers and independent repair providers with the same equipment repair resources, including applicable software capabilities, that it currently provides to authorized Deere dealers.
The settlement resolves the FTC and states’ joint lawsuit against Deere, which alleged that Deere used unlawful practices to limit the ability of farmers and independent repair providers to perform repairs on Deere farm equipment. The settlement represents the Commission’s latest commitment to reducing the cost of living for Americans, including both farmers and downstream consumers of the products those farmers produce.
“Today’s settlement enables farmers to do what they’ve done for generations—fix their own tractors and other farm equipment—without having to pay an authorized John Deere dealer to do it for them,” said FTC Bureau of Competition Director Daniel Guarnera. “The settlement with Deere will help lower costs for American farmers. The FTC will continue fighting against anticompetitive restrictions on American consumers’ right to repair.”
Deere makes the only software repair tools capable of performing all electronic repairs on Deere equipment. Deere, however, has previously made such tools available only to its authorized dealers, forcing farmers to rely on authorized dealers for many necessary repairs, according to the FTC and the states’ lawsuit filed in January 2025. By withholding these repair capabilities, the complaint alleged Deere unlawfully acquired and maintained monopoly power in markets for repair services for Deere farm equipment. Deere’s practices led to service delays and higher costs for farmers, the complaint further alleged.
Deere will also be subject to strict reporting and oversight requirements to ensure its compliance with the stipulated order. The term of the order is 10 years and may be extended if Deere violates its terms.
