Decision Workspace
syncat vs tree-sitter-highlight vs syntect
Side-by-side comparison of Rust crates
45
syncat
growingv3.8.4
Syntax aware cat
73
tree-sitter-highlight
growingv0.26.7
Library for performing syntax highlighting with Tree-sitter
66
syntect
growingv5.3.0
library for high quality syntax highlighting and code intelligence using Sublime Text's grammars
Core Metrics
| syncat | tree-sitter-highlight | syntect | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Health Score | 45 | 73 | 66 |
| Total Downloads | 16.5K | 3.1M | 13.0M |
| 30d Downloads | 24 | 105.6K | 1.7M |
| Dependents | 0 | 1.0K | 7.0K |
| Releases | 16 | 47 | 49 |
| Last Updated | 340d ago | 13d ago | 181d ago |
| Age | 6y | 7y 1m | 9y 9m |
Health Breakdown
syncat
Maintenance
6
Quality
19
Community
5
Popularity
5
Documentation
10
tree-sitter-highlight
Maintenance
18
Quality
13
Community
19
Popularity
8
Documentation
15
syntect
Maintenance
10
Quality
16
Community
19
Popularity
8
Documentation
13
Technical Details
| syncat | tree-sitter-highlight | syntect | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Version | 3.8.4 | 0.26.7 | 5.3.0 |
| Stable (≥1.0) | ✓ Yes | ✗ No | ✓ Yes |
| License | MIT | MIT | MIT |
| Dependencies | 18 | 4 | 23 |
| Crate Size | 36KB | 19KB | 833KB |
| Features | 3 | 0 | 14 |
| Yanked % | 0.0% | 2.1% | 6.1% |
| Edition | 2024 | 2021 | 2021 |
| MSRV | — | 1.84 | — |
| Owners | 1 | 3 (team) | 4 |
Links
Quick Verdict
- •tree-sitter-highlight leads with a health score of 73/100, but none of the options score above 80.
- •syntect has the most downloads (13.0M), suggesting wider adoption.
- •syntect is depended on by 7.0K crates — strongest ecosystem trust.
- •tree-sitter-highlight is pre-1.0 — API may change.