Waxed paper is thin paper coated in paraffin wax, and will leave a small amount of paraffin on things if you bake with it, which I like to try to avoid. The reynolds FAQ for cut-rite wax paper suggests that you only use if for baking purposes if it won't be exposed directly to heat, so only for lining cake pans basically. It's cheaper than parchment, so it's great for lining things that are kept cold, like pans for chocolate dipped things to cool on, and it's great for keeping things separate while freezing them.
Parchment paper is either coated with silicone (as with "bakery release paper") or is treated with chemicals to create a non-stick surface. Both are sold as baking parchment. Temperatures up to 420 are okay, more than that may cause smoking, and direct exposure to say, the broiler, can cause it to burst into flame.
Neither is reusable or recyclable.
Parchment is coated with silicon and can withstand much higher temperatures than waxed paper. You can use them pretty interchangeably for lower heat applications, like putting in the bottom of a cake pan before adding the batter. You would not want to use waxed paper for higher heat things like lining a pan to roast veggies.
you can bake parchment to about 500F without it smoking and burning. can't do that with wax paper. wax paper is more for non-baking usage like wrapping sandwiches, holding choc dipped cookies as they harden, etc.
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Parchment paper is either coated with silicone (as with "bakery release paper") or is treated with chemicals to create a non-stick surface. Both are sold as baking parchment. Temperatures up to 420 are okay, more than that may cause smoking, and direct exposure to say, the broiler, can cause it to burst into flame.
Neither is reusable or recyclable.