Crates / either / Alternatives
Rust crate alternatives · data Oct 24, 2026
Alternatives to either
Short answerThe closest alternatives to either on crates.io data are arrayvec (1.7M real downloads a day), fixedbitset (1.5M real downloads a day), hashbrown (8.9M real downloads a day). Of the 8 we list, the most used is hashbrown, and 7 shipped a release in the last year. either itself gets 3,049,603 a day with 1,488 dependents.
Every alternative we found
| Alternative | Real downloads a day | vs either | Dependents | Last release | Why it is listed | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| arrayvec Widely used | 1,733,744 | 0.57x | 1,215 | 4mo | category Data structures, category No standard library, keyword "data-structure", keyword "no_std" | side by side |
| fixedbitset Established | 1,507,079 | 0.49x | 199 | 2.5y | category Data structures, keyword "data-structure", keyword "no_std" | compare |
| hashbrown Widely used | 8,927,960 | 2.93x | 2,468 | 6mo | category Data structures, category No standard library, keyword "no_std" | compare |
| indexmap Widely used | 4,883,122 | 1.60x | 6,422 | 49d | category Data structures, category No standard library, keyword "no_std" | compare |
| smallvec Widely used | 3,868,589 | 1.27x | 4,345 | 1d | category Data structures, keyword "no_std" | compare |
| slab Established | 3,013,568 | 0.99x | 619 | 9mo | category Data structures, category No standard library, keyword "no_std" | compare |
| equivalent Pulled in | 2,919,252 | 0.96x | 44 | 11d | category Data structures, category No standard library, keyword "no_std" | compare |
| tinyvec Established | 2,308,962 | 0.76x | 270 | 41d | category Data structures, category No standard library, keyword "no_std" | compare |
How to choose
- Same job, not the same API. Each line is listed because it shares a crates.io category or keyword with either; 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 either: 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 either, 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: Widely used and steady. 1,733,744 real downloads a day.arrayvecRust crate. A vector with fixed capacity, backed by an array (it can be stored on the stack too). Implements fixed capacity ArrayVec and ArrayString. Real use: 1.7M...Read it next →Also worth your time