Decision Workspace
pkcs5 vs pkcs8 vs pem-rfc7468
Side-by-side comparison of Rust crates
66
pkcs5
growingv0.8.0
Pure Rust implementation of Public-Key Cryptography Standards (PKCS) #5: Password-Based Cryptography Specification Version 2.1 (RFC 8018)
69
pkcs8
growingv0.11.0
Pure Rust implementation of Public-Key Cryptography Standards (PKCS) #8: Private-Key Information Syntax Specification (RFC 5208), with additional support for PKCS#8v2 asymmetric key packages (RFC 5958)
66
pem-rfc7468
growingv1.0.0
PEM Encoding (RFC 7468) for PKIX, PKCS, and CMS Structures, implementing a strict subset of the original Privacy-Enhanced Mail encoding intended specifically for use with cryptographic keys, certificates, and other messages. Provides a no_std-friendly, constant-time implementation suitable for use with cryptographic private keys.
Core Metrics
| pkcs5 | pkcs8 | pem-rfc7468 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Health Score | 66 | 69 | 66 |
| Total Downloads | 30.6M | 291.4M | 222.9M |
| 30d Downloads | 2.8M | 31.5M | 26.4M |
| Dependents | 175 | 3.2K | 535 |
| Releases | 30 | 51 | 23 |
| Last Updated | 31d ago | 28d ago | 198d ago |
| Age | 5y 11m | 5y 11m | 5y 3m |
Health Breakdown
pkcs5
Maintenance
17
Quality
12
Community
17
Popularity
8
Documentation
12
pkcs8
Maintenance
17
Quality
12
Community
20
Popularity
8
Documentation
12
pem-rfc7468
Maintenance
10
Quality
18
Community
18
Popularity
8
Documentation
12
Technical Details
| pkcs5 | pkcs8 | pem-rfc7468 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Version | 0.8.0 | 0.11.0 | 1.0.0 |
| Stable (≥1.0) | ✗ No | ✗ No | ✓ Yes |
| License | Apache-2.0 OR MIT | Apache-2.0 OR MIT | Apache-2.0 OR MIT |
| Dependencies | 12 | 8 | 1 |
| Crate Size | 50KB | 35KB | 25KB |
| Features | 7 | 8 | 2 |
| Yanked % | 13.3% | 15.7% | 13.0% |
| Edition | 2024 | 2024 | 2024 |
| MSRV | 1.85 | 1.85 | 1.85 |
| Owners | 3 (team) | 3 (team) | 2 (team) |
Links
Quick Verdict
- •pkcs8 leads with a health score of 69/100, but none of the options score above 80.
- •pkcs8 is depended on by 3.2K crates — strongest ecosystem trust.
- •pkcs5, pkcs8 are pre-1.0 — API may change.