Euro-trance emerged as a hybrid of Hard Trance and Eurodance music and was most popular between late 1998 and 2000. It usually has around 140-145 BPM, a bass which is generally quite heavy, many breakdowns and big rifts, and often uses female vocals. These elements make euro-trance to be less sophisticated and complex than other Trance sub-genres and this fact is accentuated by its commercial sound with a primitive lyrical content and renderings of classic Happy Hardcore anthems. This is why most euro-trance compositions result in happy sounding melodies. Many people associate this genre with Techno, but gradually euro-trance music moved away from this genre and developed a synth sound of its own.

Typical euro-trance style is closely related to Uplifting Trance and often confused with Vocal Trance because generally, it employs vocals in its tracks. The difference is that euro-trance tracks are characterized by more enthusiastic lyrics and upbeat tunes.