Crates / derive_more / Alternatives
Rust crate alternatives · data Oct 24, 2026
Alternatives to derive_more
Short answerThe closest alternatives to derive_more on crates.io data are displaydoc (2.5M real downloads a day), thiserror (5M real downloads a day), zerovec-derive (2.6M real downloads a day). Of the 8 we list, the most used is thiserror, and 7 shipped a release in the last year. derive_more itself gets 1,604,594 a day with 3,690 dependents.
Every alternative we found
| Alternative | Real downloads a day | vs derive_more | Dependents | Last release | Why it is listed | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| displaydoc Established | 2,547,279 | 1.59x | 270 | 3mo | keyword "derive", keyword "display" | compare |
| thiserror Foundational | 5,048,791 | 3.15x | 75,923 | 31d | category No standard library, category Rust patterns, keyword "derive" | side by side |
| zerovec-derive Pulled in | 2,561,390 | 1.60x | 6 | 2d | category No standard library, category Rust patterns, keyword "derive" | compare |
| clap_derive Established | 2,491,922 | 1.55x | 136 | 40d | category Procedural macro helpers, keyword "derive" | compare |
| powerfmt Pulled in | 1,889,786 | 1.18x | 5 | 19d | category No standard library, category Rust patterns, keyword "display" | compare |
| num_enum Widely used | 760,679 | 0.47x | 1,159 | 7mo | category Rust patterns, keyword "derive" | compare |
| educe Established | 380,869 | 0.24x | 191 | 41d | category No standard library, category Rust patterns, keyword "derive" | compare |
| derivative Established | 320,737 | 0.20x | 616 | 5.7y | category Rust patterns, keyword "derive" | compare |
How to choose
- Same job, not the same API. Each line is listed because it shares a crates.io category or keyword with derive_more; read its description before you swap.
- More dependents means more answered questions and a smaller chance it disappears.
- Check the last release against how fast you need fixes. For derive_more: is it still maintained?
Rules
Alternatives = tracked crates (top 1000 by downloads) that share a specific crates.io category (2 points each) or keyword (3 points each) with derive_more, most similar first; its own parts (same name prefix) and crates it depends on or that depend on it are left out, because those are companions, not substitutes. Real downloads = quiet-day median, crates.io data Oct 24, 2026. Built when we find 3 or more.
Up next
The closest alternative: Established and steady. 2,547,279 real downloads a day.displaydocRust crate. A derive macro for implementing the display Trait via a doc comment and string interpolation. Real use: 2.5M downloads a day on quiet days; 270 crates depend...Read it next →Also worth your time