If I remember Rust binaries, due to default static linking end up rather large. There is work to remove all unnecessary things from libstd into other libraries.
That said, I can't wait for rust teepee server to land, it shapes up to be a rather interesting project.
Compare the footprint of your single static binary to a python program + the appropriate python 2.7.whatever & specific library versions which must be shipped with the program since odds are the user doesn't have the right version installed...
The binary is large, but the memory footprint small. And the startup time is small, too… servers that start up in under five milliseconds—delightful for me, with my Django background.
Dynamic linking cuts the binary size down considerably, but of course it requires the Rust libraries to be installed on the machine. You can also turn on LTO for even more savings.
That said, I can't wait for rust teepee server to land, it shapes up to be a rather interesting project.