crates-io-name-check

name	crates-io-name-check
description	Verify that a new Rust crate name is available and appropriate on crates.io before committing to it. Use when creating a new crate, starting a new Rust project, or before the first cargo publish. Triggers: "check crate name", "is name taken", "crates.io available", "new crate".
category	rust
license	MIT
metadata	{"author":"d-oit","version":"1.0","tags":"rust crates naming publish"}

Skill: crates-io-name-check

Purpose

Verify that a new Rust crate name is available and appropriate on crates.io before committing to it in Cargo.toml. This is a generic skill for any Rust project using this template — run it whenever you create a new crate (workspace member or standalone).

When to Use

• Creating a new crate under crates/ in the workspace
• Starting a new Rust project from this template
• Before the first cargo publish
• When renaming a crate

Availability Check

Method 1: cargo search (CLI, recommended)

cargo search <your-crate-name>

• If the exact name appears in results → taken, choose another.
• No exact match → likely available (confirm with Method 2).

Method 2: crates.io API

STATUS=$(curl -s -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}" https://crates.io/api/v1/crates/<your-crate-name>)
if [ "$STATUS" = "404" ]; then
  echo "✓ Name is available"
else
  echo "✗ Name is taken (HTTP $STATUS)"
fi

Method 3: Browser

Open https://crates.io/crates/<your-crate-name> — 404 page = available.

Naming Best Practices

Rule	Good	Bad
Use kebab-case	my-tool-core	my_tool_core
Be specific	invoice-parser	parser
Avoid generic names	—	utils, helpers, common
Scope to project	myapp-cli, myapp-sdk	cli, sdk
Keep it short	foobar-rs	foobar-rust-library-2026
No name squatting	—	reserving empty crates

Similarity Check

Also check for confusingly similar names that could mislead users:

# Search for similar prefixes
cargo search <prefix>

# Check typosquat risk manually on crates.io
# https://crates.io/search?q=<your-name>

Cargo.toml Name vs Package Directory

Note that the [package] name in Cargo.toml is the published crate name. The directory name under crates/ can differ but should match for clarity:

crates/
  my-tool-core/    ← directory
    Cargo.toml     → [package] name = "my-tool-core"  ✓

Template Usage Note

The template includes a placeholder crate crates/example-crate/. When you replace it with your real crate, rename both the directory and the [package] name in Cargo.toml, and run this skill to verify availability before your first commit.

Rationalizations

Rationalization	Reality
"The name sounds fine, I don't need to check."	Names are permanent on crates.io. Verify before first publish.
"I'll rename later if needed."	Renaming a published crate breaks all downstream users.
"Similar names are fine."	Confusingly similar names lead to typosquatting and user confusion.

Red Flags

• Publishing without checking name availability first
• Using generic names like utils, helpers, common
• Ignoring similar existing crate names that could confuse users

References

• crates.io policies
• Cargo naming guidelines
• crates.io search