use & Paths

use brings paths into scope. Re-export with pub use. Prefer explicit imports over glob in application code.

Recipe

use std::collections::HashMap;
use crate::config::Settings;
 
pub use crate::error::Error;

When to reach for this: Reducing path noise and crafting public crate API surface.

Working Example

mod prelude {
    pub use super::{Api, Client};
}
 
pub struct Api;
pub struct Client;
 
pub mod prelude;

What this demonstrates:

pub use reexports for ergonomic imports
Prelude module pattern
crate:: absolute path from crate root

Deep Dive

Paths: crate::, super::, self::, external serde::. use a::{b, c} grouped. as rename: use std::fmt::Display as FmtDisplay.

Gotchas

Glob use std::collections::* - Namespace pollution. Fix: Explicit use in libs.
Ambiguous glob - Compile error on conflict. Fix: Rename.
pub use semver - Reexport is public API commitment.
deep relative paths - Fragile moves. Fix: crate:: paths.
unused imports - rustfix / clippy.

Alternatives

Alternative	Use When	Don't Use When
Fully qualified path	One-off	Repeated use
Prelude module	Common imports	Tiny crate
`#[rustfmt::skip]` imports	Grouping style	Default fmt ok

FAQs

self vs crate?

self current module tree; crate root.

super?

Parent module.

extern crate?

2018 edition implicit.

use type alias?

pub type Result<T> = ...

nested use?

use std::{io, io::Read};

reexport macro?

pub use macro_rules path tricky - macro_export.

rust-analyzer?

Auto import assists.

edition 2024 paths?

Check migration for path changes.

wasm?

Same module rules.

test use?

tests import crate with use crate::.

The Rust Programming Language (The Book) - Canonical beginner-to-intermediate guide.
Rust By Example - Runnable examples covering language features and standard library.
The Rust Reference - Formal language reference.
The Rust Programming Language, 2nd Edition (Amazon) - Steve Klabnik & Carol Nichols.
Fearless Rust (Leanpub) - Freek van Keulen.

Stack versions: This page was written for Rust 1.97.0 (edition 2024), Tokio 1.x, Axum 0.8, serde 1.0, sqlx 0.8, clap 4, and Polars 0.46+.

Revisado por Chris St. John·Última actualización: 19 jul 2026

Was this article helpful?

Rust Use Imports

use & Paths

use brings paths into scope. Re-export with pub use. Prefer explicit imports over glob in application code.

Recipe

use std::collections::HashMap;
use crate::config::Settings;
 
pub use crate::error::Error;

When to reach for this: Reducing path noise and crafting public crate API surface.

Working Example

mod prelude {
    pub use super::{Api, Client};
}
 
pub struct Api;
pub struct Client;
 
pub mod prelude;

What this demonstrates:

pub use reexports for ergonomic imports
Prelude module pattern
crate:: absolute path from crate root

Deep Dive

Paths: crate::, super::, self::, external serde::. use a::{b, c} grouped. as rename: use std::fmt::Display as FmtDisplay.

Gotchas

Glob use std::collections::* - Namespace pollution. Fix: Explicit use in libs.
Ambiguous glob - Compile error on conflict. Fix: Rename.
pub use semver - Reexport is public API commitment.
deep relative paths - Fragile moves. Fix: crate:: paths.
unused imports - rustfix / clippy.

Alternatives

Alternative	Use When	Don't Use When
Fully qualified path	One-off	Repeated use
Prelude module	Common imports	Tiny crate
`#[rustfmt::skip]` imports	Grouping style	Default fmt ok

FAQs

self vs crate?

self current module tree; crate root.

super?

Parent module.

extern crate?

2018 edition implicit.

use type alias?

pub type Result<T> = ...

nested use?

use std::{io, io::Read};

reexport macro?

pub use macro_rules path tricky - macro_export.

rust-analyzer?

Auto import assists.

edition 2024 paths?

Check migration for path changes.

wasm?

Same module rules.

test use?

tests import crate with use crate::.

The Rust Programming Language (The Book) - Canonical beginner-to-intermediate guide.
Rust By Example - Runnable examples covering language features and standard library.
The Rust Reference - Formal language reference.
The Rust Programming Language, 2nd Edition (Amazon) - Steve Klabnik & Carol Nichols.
Fearless Rust (Leanpub) - Freek van Keulen.

Stack versions: This page was written for Rust 1.97.0 (edition 2024), Tokio 1.x, Axum 0.8, serde 1.0, sqlx 0.8, clap 4, and Polars 0.46+.

Revisado por Chris St. John·Última actualización: 19 jul 2026

Was this article helpful?

use & Paths

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use & Paths