What hurts worse, a bee or wasp sting?

What hurts worse, a bee or wasp sting, depends on individual sensitivity, type of bee or wasp, location of sting, and number of stings, but generally wasp stings are considered to hurt worse for most people due to wasp behavior and venom. Bee stings, particularly honeybee stings, involve barbed stinger that remains in skin and continues to release venom until removed, so pain is sharp initially and then throbbing, and bee can only sting once then dies. Wasp stings involve smooth stinger that does not remain, so wasp can sting multiple times, injecting more venom with each sting, and wasp venom often contains higher concentration of acetylcholine and other chemicals that cause more intense burning pain. On Schmidt sting pain index, which rates sting pain from insects, both bee and wasp stings are rated as moderate, with wasp stings often rated slightly higher, around 2 to 3 on scale of 4, with yellow jacket stings described as hot and smoky and very painful. For most people, wasp sting feels more painful and burning, while bee sting feels sharp and then itchy. However, for allergic individuals, both can cause severe reactions, and multiple wasp stings increase risk. So wasp sting generally hurts worse due to ability to sting multiple times and more painful venom, but individual experiences vary, and both cause pain, redness, and swelling lasting hours to days.