To easily and accurately change a preparatory plan of a yarn end retrieving apparatus caused by a lot change, by automatically changing a standby position of a suction cylinder in response to a difference in a vertical dimension of a bobbin.

This yarn end retrieving apparatus has a yarn releasing device that sucks and releases a yarn end from a surface of the bobbin, a cutter device that cuts yarn sucked out by the yarn releasing device, and a cylinder elevating and lowering device that elevates and lowers a suction cylinder. The cylinder elevating and lowering device is composed of a guide member, a slider that slidably elevates and lowers along the guide member, and a driving structure that uses a stepping motor as a driving source. The suction cylinder is fixed to the slider so as to be movable together with the slider. The suction cylinder is elevated and lowered by power of the stepping motor.