Crates / Compare / url vs x509-parser
Rust crates side by side · data Oct 24, 2026
url vs x509-parser
Short answerBy steady daily use, url is bigger: 2,520,673 real downloads a day against 611,159 for x509-parser (4.1x). 16,906 crates depend on url and 803 on x509-parser. url last shipped 10 months ago, x509-parser 9 months ago.
url
FoundationalFoundational and steady.
16,906 crates depend on it; no release in the last 90 days, so its count is all steady use.
URL library for Rust, based on the WHATWG URL Standard
x509-parser
EstablishedEstablished and gaining.
803 crates depend on it; no release in the last 90 days, so its count is all steady use.
Parser for the X.509 v3 format (RFC 5280 certificates)
urlx509-parser · 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 | url | x509-parser |
|---|---|---|
| Real downloads a day | 2,520,673 | 611,159 |
| Crates that depend on it | 16,906 | 803 |
| Last release | 2.5.8, 10 months ago | 0.18.1, 9 months ago |
| Trend vs the field | -2% | +16% |
| Release-window share | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Downloads in the window | 227,266,461 | 58,489,536 |
| All-time downloads | 986,357,342 | 193,530,573 |
| Versions published | 89 | 39 |
| License | MIT OR Apache-2.0 | MIT OR Apache-2.0 |
| MSRV | 1.63 | 1.67.1 |
| First published | Nov 14, 2014 | Jan 20, 2018 |
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 (url, 16,906 dependents): more eyes, more answered questions, and you may already have it in your tree.
- Check the release dates against your own pace: url 10 months ago, x509-parser 9 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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