Colletes similis is a species of plasterer bee belonging to the family Colletidae, subfamily Colletinae.

[1] This species is present in the Palearctic realm, including most of Europe and Northern Asia (excluding China).

[3] These plasterer bee can be found on sandy soils, on coastal cliffs and dunes and on chalk grassland, meadows, hedge rows, moors, heaths and open woodland.

They usually nest in small aggregations in closely self scattered burrows, that they dug into the bare ground, on slopes and in vegetation-poor areas.

They mainly collect pollen from Asteraceae (Tanacetum vulgare , Leontodon autumnalis, Cirsium arvense, Silybum marianum, Senecio, Inula, Pulicaria, Achillea, Hypochaeris and Sonchus species ), but also on Apiaceae (Daucus carota, Angelica sylvestris, Heracleum sphondylium), Resedaceae (Reseda lutea), Rosaceae (Filipendula vulgaris), Cucurbitaceae (Bryonia dioica), Euphorbiaceae (Euphorbia species) and Campanulaceae (Jasione montana).