Different Wasp Species: Wasp, Hornet and Yellowjacket ID

• The bald-faced hornet is not a true hornet — it is an "aerial yellowjacket"; the only true hornet in North America is the European hornet.
• Flight behavior distinguishes paper wasps from yellowjackets: paper wasps dangle their legs in flight, yellowjackets hold legs close to the body.
• Nest material and shape differ: paper wasps build small open umbrella-shaped combs, while German yellowjackets build enclosed paper-envelope nests, often in attics/wall voids or underground.
• Compared with bees, wasps are predators/hunters (prey on caterpillars, aphids, flies) rather than pollen/nectar feeders, and can sting repeatedly.

People most often mix wasps/hornets/yellowjackets up with:

• Bees

Open the other page and compare its list against the marks above; the differences are usually in the antennae, wings or the way the body is divided.

Wasps sting and can sting repeatedly; European paper wasp stings are described as no more or less painful/dangerous than other paper wasp stings. A small proportion of people are allergic to bee/wasp stings. Seek medical care promptly for severe symptoms or any allergic reaction.

German yellowjackets are described as invasive, pest wasps that frequently build nests around structures and come into conflict with people foraging for food; social wasps generally also prey on other insect pests.

German yellowjacket nests are usually in attics, wall voids, and other open areas of structures, but may also be found underground.

Get as close as your camera will focus, from directly above, in daylight or a bright lamp. Include the whole body with the legs and antennae in frame; a second shot from the side shows wings and body segments. Put a coin or ruler next to it for scale. For a bite or a bug found on skin or bedding, photograph the bug itself, not the mark. The app names the likely group; use the list above to confirm.

Most wasps people notice around a house belong to four groups of social wasps, which live in colonies and defend a paper nest. University of Maryland Extension describes them this way:

• Yellowjackets: 3/8 to 5/8 inch, queens a little larger; black and yellow, with patterns that vary by species. Some nest in the ground, often in an old rodent burrow, some in dense shrubs or on structures. Active from spring to the first hard frost.
• Bald-faced hornet: workers 5/8 to 3/4 inch, queens just over an inch; black and white with a white face. Builds a light grey, cone- or egg-shaped paper nest hanging from branches.
• European hornet: 3/4 to 1 3/8 inches; reddish-brown with golden yellow on the abdomen and teardrop-shaped marks. Nests in hollow trees, barns, outbuildings and wall voids. It flies by day and at night and is drawn to outdoor lights.
• Paper wasps: 5/8 inch to nearly 1 inch, in shades of yellow, reddish-brown and near-black, with relatively long legs. The nest is a single open comb a few inches across, shaped like an umbrella, with no paper covering.

The nest usually settles the question faster than the insect: an open umbrella comb means paper wasps, a closed grey ball in a tree means bald-faced hornets, and wasps flying in and out of a hole in the lawn usually means yellowjackets, although University of Minnesota Extension notes that most solitary wasps also nest underground.

A second group of wasps lives alone rather than in colonies, and these are the ones people often fear without reason. University of Minnesota Extension describes solitary wasps as common and beneficial: smooth, shiny and nearly hairless, from under 1/2 inch to 1 1/2 inches, in black and yellow, black and orange, or iridescent black or purple. They are not aggressive toward people, do not defend their nests, and rarely sting unless handled.

• Cicada killers: 1 to 1 1/2 inches. Males patrol and buzz people, but UMN notes males have no stinger and cannot sting.
• Mud daubers: build mud nests and leave them once finished, presenting little to no sting risk (UMN).
• Scoliid wasps: about 1 inch, blue-black with a yellow stripe on the abdomen, flying low over lawns; University of Maryland Extension notes they parasitise white grubs.
• Others: the Best Bees Company's species list adds the blue-winged wasp, great black wasp and potter wasps among wasps that rarely bother people, and the red-and-black "cow killer" wasp, which it describes as rarely aggressive despite a potent sting.

Defensiveness, not size, is what matters. University of Maryland Extension ranks the social wasps this way: yellowjackets have a reputation for being easily agitated and may seem to sting without provocation; bald-faced hornets defend their nests like other social wasps; paper wasps are not as defensive of a nest as hornets and yellowjackets and may deliberately bump into an intruder as a warning. Wasps can sting repeatedly.

The most harmless are the solitary wasps above, and in UMD's household pest guide honey bees, bumblebees and ground bees are listed as harmless, beneficial pollinators. Comparing the three groups people ask about most: yellowjackets are the ones most often met around food, since Penn State Extension notes that German yellowjackets come into conflict with people foraging for food; hornets and yellowjackets defend their nests harder than paper wasps; and UMD classes the common bees as harmless.

The best-known ranking of stings, the Schmidt sting pain index, measures pain, not toxicity. At its top level, 4, it places two wasps, the tarantula hawk and the warrior wasp, alongside the bullet ant. The tarantula hawk's pain is intense but lasts about five minutes; the warrior wasp's lasts up to two hours.

For people, the risk that extension sources stress is not the pain of a sting but an allergic reaction, which a small proportion of people have to bee and wasp stings. Call emergency services for swelling of the face, lips or throat, difficulty breathing, or fainting after a sting; the bee and wasp stings page covers what to do.

A yellowjacket is a wasp. The name "hornet" is used loosely: University of Maryland Extension notes that the bald-faced hornet is really an aerial yellowjacket, and that the European hornet is the only true hornet in North America.

The northern giant hornet, the species nicknamed "murder hornet", has been declared eradicated from the United States. The Washington Invasive Species Council reports that on 18 December 2024 the Washington State Department of Agriculture announced its eradication from Washington and the US, after 2024 became the third year of surveys with no detections. It was first found in Whatcom County in 2019, and state officials destroyed four nests, one in October 2020 and three in August and September 2021. A very large hornet seen in the US today is more likely to be a European hornet, which grows to 1 3/8 inches (UMD).

People searching for what kills hornets immediately are usually facing a nest near a door. The University of Maryland Extension position is that pesticide should be the last resort. Social wasp colonies die off in winter; yellowjacket nests end naturally at the first hard frost, so a nest found in late summer that is out of the way can often be left alone. For a nest that cannot be avoided, especially hornets or yellowjackets in or on a building, UMD suggests considering professional removal. For European hornets drawn to porches at night, it suggests turning off outdoor lights or switching to motion-activated ones.

Anyone who has had a severe reaction to a sting should not approach a nest at all.

Research and drafting for this page used AI assistance. Every figure, date and quotation was then checked line by line against the sources listed at the bottom of the page, each of which was opened while writing. Nothing here is a diagnosis. If a bite, sting or contact with an insect is followed by trouble breathing, swelling of the face or throat, spreading redness, fever or any symptom that worries you, get medical care; in the United States Poison Help (1-800-222-1222) is free and open 24 hours a day.

Work through these in order, from a photo or from a safe distance:

• Is it fuzzy? Garden Betty's first question: if it is furry, it is most likely a bee, not a wasp. Wasps are generally smooth, often brightly coloured, with a cinched waist.
• Black and white with a white face? Bald-faced hornet, about 7/8 inch (University of Minnesota Extension).
• Large, brown with yellow, up to about an inch or more? European hornet (Garden Betty; Mass Audubon gives up to 1.5 inches).
• Bright yellow and black, stocky, fast-flying? Yellow jacket, 3/8 to 5/8 inch (UMN); see yellow jacket identification.
• Slender, long legs dangling as it flies? Paper wasp, 1/2 to 1 inch (UMN).
• Dark or metallic blue with a thread-thin waist? Mud dauber (UC IPM; Ladybug Pest Management).
• Huge, up to 2 inches, near large burrows in the ground? Cicada killer (Garden Betty; Mass Audubon).
• Fuzzy, red and black, wingless, running on the ground? A velvet ant, which is a wingless female wasp with a very painful sting (Garden Betty).

If you can see the nest, it usually settles the question faster; see bee and wasp nest identification.

Searches for the smell wasps hate or for WD-40 usually come from someone with wasps at a patio table. The sources behind this page do not support a repellent smell: University of Minnesota Extension states that there are no effective pesticides to repel scavenging yellow jackets. What reduces visits is removing food: keep food and pet food covered or indoors, cover drink cans and keep garbage sealed (UC IPM). WD-40 is a lubricant, not a product labelled for wasps, and none of the university sources used here recommend it; for a nest, use a product whose label lists wasps or call a professional.

Hornet identification starts with where you are, because only a few hornets occur in North America and Britain.

• European hornet (Vespa crabro): 1 to 1 1/2 inches, mahogany or reddish-brown head and thorax, yellow face, brown wings and a yellow and black banded abdomen whose black bands have teardrop-shaped extensions (Ohio State University). It is one of the few hornets that flies at night, strips bark from twigs in late summer to feed on sap, and nests 6 feet or more above ground with up to 200 to 400 workers (Ohio State University; University of Maryland Extension, which notes 1,000 or more in some nests). It has been established in North America for over 100 years (University of Maryland Extension).
• Bald-faced hornet (Dolichovespula maculata): not a true hornet but an aerial yellowjacket, 13 to 20 mm, black with ivory-white markings on the face, thorax, legs and abdomen. It builds grey, football-shaped paper nests at least 3 feet up in trees and shrubs (Penn State Extension).
• Yellow-legged or Asian hornet (Vespa velutina): smaller than the European hornet, very dark, with an orange face, a dark abdomen with a wide orange band on the fourth segment, and legs that look dipped in yellow paint (British Beekeepers Association; The Wildlife Trusts). Ohio State reports it was confirmed in Georgia in August 2023.
• Northern giant hornet (Vespa mandarina): has an entirely yellow head without the teardrop marks of the European hornet, and Ohio State reports it was eradicated from the United States by 2024.

In Britain and Europe this is the comparison that matters, because the yellow-legged hornet is a non-native species that preys on honey bees and other pollinators (The Wildlife Trusts).

• Head: the European hornet's head is yellow from the front and red from above; the yellow-legged hornet has an orange face on a black head (The Wildlife Trusts; British Beekeepers Association).
• Abdomen: mostly pale yellow with black stripes on the European hornet; almost entirely dark with fine yellow stripes and one yellow or orange fourth segment on the yellow-legged hornet (The Wildlife Trusts).
• Legs: black or reddish-brown on the European hornet; yellow tips on the yellow-legged hornet (The Wildlife Trusts).
• Season: yellow-legged hornets are active from April to November, most of all in August and September (The Wildlife Trusts).

The UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology says yellow-legged hornets do not pose a greater health risk than other hornets or wasps; the concern is for insects.

• Cicada killer wasp: a native, solitary wasp with a black abdomen and yellow splotches, reddish eyes and amber wings, slenderer than a hornet and very unlikely to sting (Ohio State University).
• Giant horntail (a wood wasp): a long body with a yellow spike at the tip of the abdomen (The Wildlife Trusts).
• Hornet moth and lunar hornet moth: furry bodies, two pairs of wings, small eyes and no defined waist (The Wildlife Trusts).
• Hornet mimic hoverfly: a less defined waist, one pair of wings, short stubby antennae and large round eyes (The Wildlife Trusts).
• Yellowjackets and paper wasps: smaller, at 3/8 to 5/8 inch and 5/8 to nearly 1 inch respectively (University of Maryland Extension); see yellow jacket identification.

• One hornet on its own: walk away calmly. University of Maryland Extension says social wasps do not seek people out to sting them; they sting when a nest is disturbed or they feel threatened.
• A nest away from doors and paths: leave it. Nests die in winter (Ohio State University), and Penn State Extension says bald-faced hornet nests can be left alone unless they are within 10 feet of a building entrance.
• A nest close to the house, or anyone with a sting allergy: hire a professional. Penn State warns that spraying only the outside of a nest angers the colony and raises the risk of stings over the following days; University of Maryland Extension advises against home remedies such as flooding or fire.
• European hornets at the windows at night: they are attracted to lights, so switch to motion-activated outdoor lighting (University of Maryland Extension).
• A suspected yellow-legged hornet in the UK: report it with the free Asian Hornet Watch app, the online recording form or by email to alertnonnative@ceh.ac.uk, with a photo if it is safe to take one, and do not disturb the nest (UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology). The British Beekeepers Association notes that sightings without a photo are much less likely to be followed up.

For the nest itself, see bee and wasp nests.

Three photos settle most hornet questions: the face from the front (yellow on a European hornet, orange on a yellow-legged hornet, white on a bald-faced hornet), the abdomen from above (teardrop marks, a single orange band, or white bands), and the legs (yellow tips point to the yellow-legged hornet). Photograph from a distance with zoom and never near a nest. Photograph the insect and InsectLens identifies it.