<p>Public awareness of pollinator conservation is growing worldwide, with bees generally perceived positively for their pollination services, while wasps are often negatively perceived despite their ecological contributions. However, positive perception of bees largely focuses on familiar species such as honeybees and bumblebees, while less familiar bee species such as cavity-nesting solitary bees remain poorly understood. Although public perceptions of pollinators have been widely studied, research has predominantly focused on popular and familiar species, leaving much less known about how unfamiliar species are perceived and valued. To address this gap, we focused on cavity-nesting solitary bees as a representative case of unfamiliar pollinators. We conducted an image-based survey using photographs of honeybees, cavity-nesting solitary bees, solitary wasps and social wasps to assess public recognition, perceived ecological contributions and conservation willingness. We also examined the extent to which respondents would accept the installation of bee hotels in proximity to their living environment. We found that solitary bees were less recognized than honeybees and wasps, likely owing to lower encounter rates in daily life. Moreover, many respondents were unable to distinguish solitary bees from wasps (both solitary and social). Consequently, like solitary bees, solitary wasps, and social wasps were undervalued for their contributions to humans, and these three groups received much less conservation willingness than honeybees. The conflation with wasps may, in turn, foster unwarranted negative perceptions of solitary bees. Furthermore, most respondents preferred to install bee hotels far from areas visible in their daily life.</p>