Side by side
rustup vs SDKMAN!
Both stand on runtime version managers. Which one you can start free with, which one lets you read the code, and what each costs once you pay.
Free plan LinuxMacWindows
rustup provides toolchain installation, switching, updates, and target management for Rust development. Note the variation in nightly components and the stated download-signature limitation.
Visit rustup
Free plan APILinuxMac+1
SDKMAN! is focused on JVM SDK and tool version management, with project pinning and automatic switching options. It is not intended for Go, Rust, Node.js, Python or Ruby toolchains.
Visit SDKMAN!The facts
| rustup | SDKMAN! | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Open source | Not published | Not published |
| Runs on | Linux, Mac, Windows | API, Linux, Mac, Windows |
| Lowest paid plan | Free or on request | Not published |
| Plans published | 1 | None |
| Maker | Not published | Not published |
| Website | rustup.rs | sdkman.io |
| On runtime version managers | #19 of 30 | #23 of 30 |
rustup: what it does well
- Switches among stable, beta, and nightly toolchains.
- Can install specific Rust versions and dated releases.
- Adds target standard libraries for cross-compilation.
- Provides proxies for Cargo, rust-analyzer, Clippy, and other tools.
- Runs on Windows, Linux, macOS, and other listed systems.
What to know first
- Download signatures are not validated.
- Nightly toolchains may fail to build or lack components.
- Android cross-compilation also requires the Android NDK and usually a linker.
- Windows users may need Visual Studio prerequisites.
SDKMAN!: what it does well
- Manages versions for a broad range of JVM tools
- Project versions can be recorded in .sdkmanrc
- Automatic switching is available when entering a directory
- Free and open source under Apache 2.0
- CI mode disables prompts and self-updates
What to know first
- Windows requires WSL or MSYS with MinGW
- Cygwin is no longer supported
- Installer requires curl, zip and unzip
- Security updates cover only the latest CLI release
Alternatives to rustup Alternatives to SDKMAN! The whole list