crates.io

aid: crates-io
url: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/api-evangelist/crates-io/refs/heads/main/apis.yml
apis:
  - aid: crates-io:crates-io-web-api
    name: crates.io Web API
    tags:
      - Crates
      - Package Registry
      - Rust
      - Search
      - Publishing
    humanURL: https://doc.rust-lang.org/cargo/reference/registry-web-api.html
    properties:
      - url: https://doc.rust-lang.org/cargo/reference/registry-web-api.html
        type: Documentation
      - url: openapi/crates-io-web-api-openapi.yml
        type: OpenAPI
      - url: json-schema/crates-io-crate-schema.json
        type: JSONSchema
      - url: json-structure/crates-io-crate-structure.json
        type: JSONStructure
      - url: json-ld/crates-io-context.jsonld
        type: JSONLD
      - url: rules/crates-io-rules.yml
        type: SpectralRules
      - url: examples/crates-io-search-example.json
        type: Example
      - url: examples/crates-io-get-crate-example.json
        type: Example
    description: >
      The crates.io Web API exposes the endpoints used by Cargo and the crates.io website to search the registry, fetch
      crate and version metadata, publish new versions, yank and unyank versions, and manage crate ownership. Hosted at
      https://crates.io/api/v1, it is the canonical implementation of the Cargo Registry Web API specification
      documented in the Cargo book.
  - aid: crates-io:crates-io-sparse-index
    name: crates.io Sparse Index
    tags:
      - Index
      - Package Registry
      - Rust
      - Sparse Protocol
    humanURL: https://doc.rust-lang.org/cargo/reference/registry-index.html
    properties:
      - url: https://doc.rust-lang.org/cargo/reference/registry-index.html
        type: Documentation
      - url: https://blog.rust-lang.org/2023/03/09/Rust-1.68.0.html
        type: Documentation
        name: Sparse registry protocol stabilized in Rust 1.68
      - url: openapi/crates-io-sparse-index-openapi.yml
        type: OpenAPI
      - url: json-schema/crates-io-index-entry-schema.json
        type: JSONSchema
      - url: examples/crates-io-config-example.json
        type: Example
      - url: examples/crates-io-sparse-index-example.json
        type: Example
    description: >
      The crates.io sparse index at https://index.crates.io serves the registry config document plus per-crate
      newline-delimited JSON metadata files over HTTP, replacing the legacy git index clone. Cargo uses the sparse
      protocol by default since Rust 1.70 (June 2023). Each index entry records a version's dependencies, features,
      SHA-256 checksum, and yank state.
name: crates.io
tags:
  - Rust
  - Package Registry
  - Crates
  - Cargo
  - Open Source
  - Developer Tools
  - Rust Foundation
kind: contract
image: https://kinlane-images.s3.amazonaws.com/shared/apis-json/apis-json-logo.jpg
access: 3rd-Party
common:
  - url: https://crates.io
    name: crates.io
    type: Portal
  - url: https://doc.rust-lang.org/cargo/
    name: The Cargo Book
    type: Documentation
  - url: https://doc.rust-lang.org/cargo/reference/registry-web-api.html
    name: Registry Web API Reference
    type: Documentation
  - url: https://doc.rust-lang.org/cargo/reference/registry-index.html
    name: Registry Index (Sparse + Git) Reference
    type: Documentation
  - url: https://doc.rust-lang.org/cargo/reference/registries.html
    name: Cargo Registries Overview
    type: Documentation
  - url: https://doc.rust-lang.org/cargo/reference/registry-authentication.html
    name: Registry Authentication
    type: Documentation
  - url: https://doc.rust-lang.org/cargo/reference/publishing.html
    name: Publishing on crates.io
    type: GettingStarted
  - url: https://github.com/rust-lang/crates.io
    name: rust-lang/crates.io Source Code
    type: GitHubOrganization
  - url: https://github.com/rust-lang/crates.io-index
    name: rust-lang/crates.io-index (legacy git index)
    type: SourceCode
  - url: https://github.com/rust-lang/crates.io-index-archive
    name: crates.io-index Archive
    type: SourceCode
  - url: https://github.com/rust-lang/cargo
    name: rust-lang/cargo
    type: SourceCode
  - url: https://github.com/rust-lang/crates-io-auth-action
    name: crates-io-auth-action (Trusted Publishing)
    type: Tool
  - url: https://github.com/rust-lang/crates-io-cargo-teams
    name: crates.io and Cargo Teams Home
    type: GitHubOrganization
  - url: https://github.com/rust-lang/crates-io-ops-bot
    name: crates-io-ops-bot
    type: Tool
  - url: https://github.com/rust-lang/crates_io_og_image
    name: crates.io OpenGraph image generator
    type: Tool
  - url: https://github.com/rust-lang/crates-io-heroku-metrics
    name: crates.io Heroku metrics collector
    type: Tool
  - url: https://status.crates.io/
    name: crates.io Status
    type: StatusPage
  - url: https://blog.rust-lang.org/inside-rust/
    name: Inside Rust Blog
    type: Blog
  - url: https://blog.rust-lang.org/2023/03/09/Rust-1.68.0.html
    name: Rust 1.68 — Sparse registry protocol
    type: ChangeLog
  - url: https://github.com/rust-lang/crates.io/blob/main/CONTRIBUTING.md
    name: Contributing to crates.io
    type: Documentation
  - url: https://github.com/rust-lang/crates.io/blob/main/SECURITY.md
    name: Security Policy
    type: SecurityPolicy
  - url: https://github.com/rust-lang/crates.io/blob/main/CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md
    name: Code of Conduct
    type: CodeOfConduct
  - url: https://github.com/rust-lang/crates.io/blob/main/LICENSE-APACHE
    name: Apache 2.0 License
    type: License
  - url: https://github.com/rust-lang/crates.io/blob/main/LICENSE-MIT
    name: MIT License
    type: License
  - url: mailto:help@crates.io
    name: help@crates.io
    type: Support
  - url: https://rust-lang.zulipchat.com/#narrow/stream/318791-t-crates-io
    name: Zulip —
    type: Forum
  - url: https://github.com/rust-lang/crates.io/discussions
    name: GitHub Discussions
    type: Forum
  - url: https://crates.io/policies
    name: Policies
    type: Documentation
  - url: https://crates.io/data-access
    name: Data Access
    type: Documentation
  - url: https://docs.rs
    name: docs.rs (companion documentation host)
    type: Documentation
  - url: https://foundation.rust-lang.org/
    name: Rust Foundation
    type: Sponsor
  - url: https://aws.amazon.com/
    name: Amazon Web Services (infrastructure)
    type: Sponsor
  - url: https://www.fastly.com/
    name: Fastly (CDN)
    type: Sponsor
  - type: Features
    data:
      - >-
        Centralized package registry for the Rust programming language operated by the crates.io team under the Rust
        Foundation
      - >-
        Web API at https://crates.io/api/v1 for search, crate detail, version detail, download redirect, publish, yank,
        unyank, and owner management
      - >-
        Sparse HTTP index at https://index.crates.io (default for Cargo since Rust 1.70) — replaces the legacy git index
        for the vast majority of fetches
      - >-
        Legacy git index at https://github.com/rust-lang/crates.io-index still mirrored for source replacement and
        offline scenarios
      - SHA-256 checksums published per version for tamper-evident downloads
      - Index format v2 with features2 map for namespaced and weak-dep features
      - Per-crate keywords, categories, and reverse-dependency listings on the website
      - Authentication via per-user API tokens scoped to publish, yank, and owner-management permissions
      - >-
        Trusted Publishing flow via crates-io-auth-action exchanging GitHub Actions OIDC tokens for short-lived publish
        tokens
      - Open source under Apache-2.0 and MIT — backend in Rust (axum + diesel), frontend in SvelteKit/TypeScript
      - Infrastructure sponsored by Amazon Web Services (file hosting) and Fastly (CDN)
      - Status page at status.crates.io reporting crates.io and docs.rs uptime
      - Companion documentation host docs.rs auto-builds and serves docs for every published crate version
      - No paid plans — operated as a public good of the Rust ecosystem
    sources:
      - https://crates.io
      - https://github.com/rust-lang/crates.io
      - https://doc.rust-lang.org/cargo/reference/registry-web-api.html
      - https://doc.rust-lang.org/cargo/reference/registry-index.html
      - https://doc.rust-lang.org/cargo/reference/registries.html
      - https://status.crates.io/
    updated: '2026-05-25'
created: '2026-05-25T00:00:00.000Z'
modified: '2026-05-25'
position: Consuming
description: >
  crates.io is the official package registry for the Rust programming language, operated by the crates.io team under the
  Rust Foundation with infrastructure support from Amazon Web Services and Fastly. It exposes a Web API at /api/v1 used
  by Cargo and the website for search, publishing, yanking, and owner management, plus a sparse HTTP index at
  index.crates.io that has been Cargo's default registry protocol since Rust 1.70 (June 2023). The legacy git index is
  still mirrored. Every published version is checksummed with SHA-256 and companion documentation is auto-built on
  docs.rs. The crates.io source code is dual-licensed under Apache-2.0 and MIT and runs on Rust (axum, diesel) with a
  SvelteKit frontend.
maintainers:
  - FN: Kin Lane
    email: info@apievangelist.com
    X: apievangelist
    url: https://apievangelist.com
specificationVersion: '0.16'