How to fix Rust E0597 does not live long enough

Compiler Errors
2026-04-17T12:05:42+00:00
Fix Rust E0597 by moving variable declarations to a larger scope or returning owned values instead of references to temporary data.

Fix E0597 by ensuring the variable you are borrowing lives long enough to be used after the scope where it is created ends. Move the variable declaration outside the inner scope or return the data instead of a reference to a temporary value.

fn main() {
    let data = String::from("hello");
    let s = &data; // 's' borrows 'data', which lives for the whole main function
    println!("{s}");
}

If you are trying to return a reference to a local variable, you must return the owned value instead:

fn main() {
    let s = String::from("hello");
    let result = get_string(s); // Pass ownership, not a reference
    println!("{result}");
}

fn get_string(s: String) -> String {
    s // Return the owned String
}

If you need a reference that lives longer, declare the variable in the outer scope:

fn main() {
    let data = String::from("hello");
    let s;
    {
        s = &data; // 's' borrows 'data', which is defined outside this block
    }
    println!("{s}");
}