Rust crate alternatives · data Oct 24, 2026
Alternatives to prost
Short answerThe closest alternatives to prost on crates.io data are serde (4.3M real downloads a day), serde_json (4.3M real downloads a day), serde_core (3.8M real downloads a day). Of the 8 we list, the most used is serde, and 5 shipped a release in the last year. prost itself gets 1,867,529 a day with 5,082 dependents.
Every alternative we found
| Alternative | Real downloads a day | vs prost | Dependents | Last release | Why it is listed | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| serde Foundational | 4,327,945 | 2.32x | 133,588 | 3mo | category Encoding, keyword "serialization" | side by side |
| serde_json Foundational | 4,294,696 | 2.30x | 113,141 | 13d | category Encoding, keyword "serialization" | compare |
| serde_core Established | 3,794,333 | 2.03x | 229 | 3mo | category Encoding, keyword "serialization" | compare |
| serde_urlencoded Widely used | 1,715,895 | 0.92x | 1,342 | 4.8y | category Encoding, keyword "serialization" | compare |
| serde_yaml Widely used | 1,238,004 | 0.66x | 7,766 | 2.6y | category Encoding, keyword "serialization" | compare |
| serde_with Widely used | 1,160,488 | 0.62x | 3,105 | 28d | category Encoding, keyword "serialization" | compare |
| serde_with_macros Pulled in | 1,137,240 | 0.61x | 8 | 28d | category Encoding, keyword "serialization" | compare |
| serde_path_to_error Established | 1,101,806 | 0.59x | 642 | 13mo | category Encoding, keyword "serialization" | compare |
How to choose
- Same job, not the same API. Each line is listed because it shares a crates.io category or keyword with prost; 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 prost: 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 prost, 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: Foundational and steady. 4,327,945 real downloads a day.serdeRust crate. A generic serialization/deserialization framework. Real use: 4.3M downloads a day on quiet days; 133,588 crates depend on it.Read it next →Also worth your time