Crates / hostname / Alternatives
Rust crate alternatives · data Oct 24, 2026
Alternatives to hostname
Short answerThe closest alternatives to hostname on crates.io data are gethostname (421K real downloads a day), num_threads (566K real downloads a day), wasite (348K real downloads a day). Of the 8 we list, the most used is getrandom, and 6 shipped a release in the last year. hostname itself gets 560,440 a day with 743 dependents.
Every alternative we found
| Alternative | Real downloads a day | vs hostname | Dependents | Last release | Why it is listed | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| gethostname Established | 420,580 | 0.75x | 311 | 12mo | category API bindings, category Operating systems, keyword "gethostname", keyword "hostname" | side by side |
| num_threads Pulled in | 566,226 | 1.01x | 11 | 7d | category API bindings, category Operating systems | compare |
| wasite Pulled in | 348,285 | 0.62x | 1 | 10mo | category API bindings, category Operating systems | compare |
| getrandom Widely used | 7,623,482 | 13.60x | 5,558 | 4mo | category Operating systems | compare |
| socket2 Widely used | 4,034,112 | 7.20x | 1,539 | 3mo | category API bindings | compare |
| errno Established | 2,791,762 | 4.98x | 259 | 13mo | category Operating systems | compare |
| zeroize Widely used | 2,397,082 | 4.28x | 5,204 | 18d | category Operating systems | compare |
| flate2 Widely used | 2,127,583 | 3.80x | 7,758 | 57d | category API bindings | compare |
How to choose
- Same job, not the same API. Each line is listed because it shares a crates.io category or keyword with hostname; 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 hostname: 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 hostname, 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 gaining. 420,580 real downloads a day.gethostnameRust crate. gethostname for all platforms. Real use: 421K downloads a day on quiet days; 311 crates depend on it.Read it next →Also worth your time