cargo-shear

cargo-shear

Detects and removes unused dependencies from Cargo.toml files.

Usage

Find unused dependencies

cargo shear

Fix automatically (remove unused deps)

cargo shear --fix

Key Options

• --fix - Automatically remove unused dependencies from Cargo.toml
• --ignore <CRATE> - Ignore specific crate (for false positives)

Workflow

1. Run cargo shear to list unused deps
2. Review the output for false positives (proc macros, build deps, optional features)
3. Run cargo shear --fix to remove them
4. Run cargo build to verify nothing broke

Common False Positives

Some deps may appear unused but are actually needed:

• Proc macro crates (e.g., serde_derive)
• Build dependencies
• Crates used only via feature flags
• Crates re-exported by other crates

Use --ignore <CRATE> for legitimate false positives.