Trade is a term used to describe instruments and bows which have been manufactured, usually to a price, for the general market. German trade naturally refers to instruments made in Germany.

Instruments in the lower price ranges were made very quickly, often using machinery or unconventional techniques. Some of the better instruments were hand made by skilled craftsmen in systemised workshops and, at the top end of the trade range, we see beautifully made instruments, often from highly respected violin houses. Typical centres of German trade manufacture were Markneukirchen, Dresden and Mittenwald