diff --git a/R/use_crate.R b/R/use_crate.R
index 38cfcd5d..144a30d6 100644
--- a/R/use_crate.R
+++ b/R/use_crate.R
@@ -91,7 +91,7 @@ use_crate <- function(
   # run the commmand
   processx::run(
     "cargo",
-    c("add", crate, features, git),
+    c("add", crate, features, git, optional),
     echo_cmd = TRUE,
     wd = rust_folder
   )