Crates / Compare / quick-xml vs xml-rs
Rust crates side by side · data Oct 24, 2026
quick-xml vs xml-rs
Short answerBy steady daily use, quick-xml is bigger: 1,525,182 real downloads a day against 302,873 for xml-rs (5.0x). 2,687 crates depend on quick-xml and 370 on xml-rs. quick-xml last shipped 2 months ago, xml-rs 3 months ago.
quick-xml
Widely usedWidely used and steady.
2,687 crates depend on it; downloads don't spike on releases.
High performance xml reader and writer
xml-rs
EstablishedEstablished and steady.
370 crates depend on it; downloads don't spike on releases.
An XML library in pure Rust
quick-xmlxml-rs · 100% = that crate's normal quiet day, so a spike to 300% is triple its usual traffic
Every number, side by side
| Same window, same method | quick-xml | xml-rs |
|---|---|---|
| Real downloads a day | 1,525,182 | 302,873 |
| Crates that depend on it | 2,687 | 370 |
| Last release | 0.42.0, 2 months ago | 0.8.29, 3 months ago |
| Trend vs the field | +8% | +3% |
| Release-window share | 1.3% | 1.8% |
| Downloads in the window | 147,633,822 | 27,798,477 |
| All-time downloads | 492,840,009 | 158,083,611 |
| Versions published | 104 | 80 |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| MSRV | 1.86 | 1.70 |
| First published | Feb 1, 2016 | Dec 8, 2014 |
Which to pick
- Downloads tell you what is common, not what fits. Each crate's own description above says what it is for; when the jobs differ, pick by the job.
- When both fit, prefer the one more crates depend on (quick-xml, 2,687 dependents): more eyes, more answered questions, and you may already have it in your tree.
- Check the release dates against your own pace: quick-xml 2 months ago, xml-rs 3 months ago.
Also in this space
Method
Real downloads = the median day with no release that day or the day before, from the crates.io API (Jul 27, 2026 to Oct 23, 2026). Raw crates.io counts include CI and bots and run high (why); the method is from our 90-day study.
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