'Progressive Electronic' is used to describe music played on synthesizers that is in some sense 'progressive.' 'Progressive' can refer to music influenced by diverse genres (eg. classical, jazz, world) or music that uses counterpoint, odd time signatures and polyrhythms (similar to progressive rock). In the 1970's, progressive electronic referred to artists such as Alan Parsons Project, Jean Michel Jarre, Mike Oldfield, Tangerine Dream and Vangelis that used mellotrons, organs, synthesizers and/or vocoders. More recently, the word "progressive" has come to describe styles of house and trance in which the melody gradually changes over time.

Rather than sampling or synthesizing acoustic sounds to electronically replicate them, artists tend to mutate the original timbres, sometimes to unrecognizable states. True artists in the genre also create their own sounds (as opposed to using the preset sounds that come with modern synthesizers). In progressive electro-acoustic music, the electronics play an equal if not greater part in the overall concept. Acoustic instruments performed in real time are usually processed through reverb, harmonizing, or other methods, which adds an entirely new dimension to the player's technique.