Crates / pin-project-lite / Alternatives
Rust crate alternatives · data Oct 24, 2026
Alternatives to pin-project-lite
Short answerThe closest alternatives to pin-project-lite on crates.io data are zerovec-derive (2.6M real downloads a day), syn (8.4M real downloads a day), quote (5M real downloads a day). Of the 8 we list, the most used is syn, and 8 shipped a release in the last year. pin-project-lite itself gets 3,270,978 a day with 1,708 dependents.
Every alternative we found
| Alternative | Real downloads a day | vs pin-project-lite | Dependents | Last release | Why it is listed | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| zerovec-derive Pulled in | 2,561,390 | 0.78x | 6 | 2d | category No standard library, category Rust patterns, keyword "macros" | compare |
| syn Foundational | 8,378,886 | 2.56x | 18,848 | 12d | keyword "macros" | compare |
| quote Foundational | 5,007,445 | 1.53x | 18,227 | 3mo | keyword "macros" | compare |
| proc-macro2 Foundational | 4,890,919 | 1.50x | 16,351 | 3mo | keyword "macros" | compare |
| synstructure Established | 2,554,307 | 0.78x | 146 | 3mo | keyword "macros" | compare |
| yoke-derive Pulled in | 2,432,865 | 0.74x | 14 | 24d | category No standard library, keyword "macros" | compare |
| zerofrom-derive Pulled in | 2,353,727 | 0.72x | 3 | 39d | category No standard library, keyword "macros" | compare |
| strum_macros Widely used | 1,935,017 | 0.59x | 2,140 | 8mo | keyword "macros" | compare |
How to choose
- Same job, not the same API. Each line is listed because it shares a crates.io category or keyword with pin-project-lite; 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 pin-project-lite: 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 pin-project-lite, 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: Few direct dependents and steady. 2,561,390 real downloads a day.zerovec-deriveRust crate. Custom derive for the zerovec crate. Real use: 2.6M downloads a day on quiet days; 6 crates depend on it.Read it next →Also worth your time