Rust crate alternatives · data Oct 24, 2026
Alternatives to xattr
Short answerThe closest alternatives to xattr on crates.io data are tempfile (2.4M real downloads a day), signal-hook-registry (2.4M real downloads a day), fs_extra (1.1M real downloads a day). Of the 8 we list, the most used is tempfile, and 6 shipped a release in the last year. xattr itself gets 811,488 a day with 150 dependents.
Every alternative we found
| Alternative | Real downloads a day | vs xattr | Dependents | Last release | Why it is listed | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| tempfile Foundational | 2,442,469 | 3.01x | 38,054 | 7mo | keyword "filesystem" | compare |
| signal-hook-registry Pulled in | 2,401,296 | 2.96x | 32 | 10mo | keyword "unix" | compare |
| fs_extra Established | 1,136,794 | 1.40x | 744 | 3.7y | keyword "filesystem" | compare |
| camino Widely used | 872,911 | 1.08x | 1,078 | 39d | keyword "filesystem" | compare |
| mime_guess Widely used | 857,341 | 1.06x | 1,543 | 2.3y | keyword "filesystem" | compare |
| which Widely used | 817,673 | 1.01x | 2,276 | 59d | keyword "unix" | compare |
| signal-hook Widely used | 704,970 | 0.87x | 1,218 | 20d | keyword "unix" | compare |
| notify Widely used | 515,449 | 0.64x | 3,197 | 7d | keyword "filesystem" | compare |
How to choose
- Same job, not the same API. Each line is listed because it shares a crates.io category or keyword with xattr; 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 xattr: 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 xattr, 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. 2,442,469 real downloads a day.tempfileRust crate. A library for managing temporary files and directories. Real use: 2.4M downloads a day on quiet days; 38,054 crates depend on it.Read it next →Also worth your time