# cargo-bins/cargo-binstall

Binary installation for rust projects

Repository: https://github.com/cargo-bins/cargo-binstall
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/cargo-binstall
Language: Rust
License: GPL-3.0
License Family: copyleft
Topics: rust, binary, installer
Last push: 2026-08-26T01:22:32+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 95/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-03T02:39:23.370411+00:00)
- activity 99, release rhythm 87, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 2088, "days_push": 8, "days_rel": 11, "gap_med": 0.0, "n_releases_24m": 601}
- flags: none
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 2839, forks 112 (observed 2026-08-28T04:07:24.666573+00:00)

## What it is
cargo-binstall is a Rust subcommand that installs prebuilt binaries of crates.io packages instead of compiling them from source with cargo install. It resolves crate metadata, finds matching release artifacts on the crate's repository or a third-party artifact host, and falls back to cargo install when no binary exists.

## Use cases
- install rust cli tools without compiling from source
- speed up CI pipelines that install cargo tools
- replace cargo install with prebuilt binary downloads
- set up rust tooling on new machines quickly
- install specific versions of rust binaries unattended

## When to choose
- you want drop-in cargo install behavior but much faster via prebuilt binaries
- you maintain CI that installs many rust tools and want to avoid long compile times
- you want automatic fallback to source builds when no binary artifact exists

## When to avoid
- you need to build from source with custom feature flags or patches
- you only install crates that publish no binary artifacts
- you require a package manager with dependency resolution beyond single binaries

## Facets
- artifact type: cli-tool
- maturity: active
- function: package-manager, cli, developer-tools
- domain: developer-tools, programming-languages
- platform: windows, cli, rust
- tags: cargo, rust-binaries, installer, crates-io, command-line, linux, macos

## Member repositories
- cargo-bins/cargo-binstall (main) score 95

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:07:24.666573+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-30T07:37:18.542781+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/cargo-bins/cargo-binstall (fetched 2026-08-28T04:07:24.666573+00:00, sha 3540acdf25e5)
  - registry_crates: https://crates.io/api/v1/crates/cargo-binstall (fetched 2026-08-29T09:52:52.618555+00:00, sha b081094f3995)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.