All three are B-flat brass instruments with three piston valves. A note fingered on one is the same note on the others, so a trumpeter can pick up a cornet or a flugelhorn and play it the same day. The difference is the shape of the tube, which changes the sound more than the notes.
| Trumpet | Cornet | Flugelhorn | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shape | Long and straight | Wrapped tighter, shorter | Wide tube, big bell |
| Sound | Bright, cutting | Rounder, softer edge | Dark, warm, soft |
| Bell (Yamaha student / Thomann) | 123 mm | 119 mm | 152 mm (6 in) |
| Where you hear it | Orchestra, big band, pop, salsa | British brass band, school band | Jazz ballads, film, brass band |
The mouthpieces differ too: a cornet uses a shorter shank and a flugelhorn a deeper cup, so each instrument comes with its own.
The trumpet: the loud one
Yamaha YTR-2330, $594
Yamaha's student trumpet: a brass body, a medium-large 11.65 mm bore, Monel valves, a mouthpiece and a gig bag. #1 of 164 bb trumpets.
Thomann had 246 B-flat trumpets in stock on November 3, 2026, from a $64 Yamaha pre-trumpet for children to $7,849. The median, $3,223, is high because Thomann carries a lot of professional models; there are plenty of good student trumpets under $1,000.
The cornet: the trumpet folded shorter
Yamaha YCR-2330III, $847
The cornet version of the same student line, with the same 11.65 mm bore, a short wrap and a case. #7 of 30 bb cornets.
A cornet is shorter in the hand, which makes it easier for children to hold, and its sound blends rather than cuts. That is why British-style brass bands are built around cornets, and why some beginners start on one. Thomann had 41 in stock, with a median of $1,199.
The flugelhorn: the dark one
Yamaha YFH-631G, $2,692
A flugelhorn with a gold brass bell and a trigger on the third valve slide for tuning low notes. #1 of 31 perinet flugelhorns.
The flugelhorn's tube keeps widening all the way to a 6-inch bell, so it sounds darker and softer and is harder to play loud and high. Trumpeters double on it for ballads. Thomann had 59 with piston valves, median $3,779, and 34 with rotary valves for German and Austrian bands, median $4,423. The cheapest, Thomann's own FH 600, costs $324.
What the same maker charges for each
| Maker and level | Trumpet | Cornet | Flugelhorn |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thomann, entry | TR 200, $212 | CR 400, $249 | FH 600, $324 |
| Jupiter | JTR700RQ, $723 | JCR700RQ, $791 | JFH1100RQ, $1,335 |
| Yamaha, student | YTR-2330, $593 | YCR-2330III, $847 | none in stock |
| Yamaha, professional | YTR-8335, $3,083 | YCR-8335, $3,767 | YFH-8310Z, $3,532 |
From the same maker at the same level, the trumpet was the cheapest or tied in every case we found; Schagerl, for one, prices its TR-610L trumpet and K-610L cornet the same, at $1,007. Trumpets are made in far larger numbers, which probably spreads the cost. Between cornet and flugelhorn the order varies.
Which one to start on
Start on the trumpet if you want to play in a school band, an orchestra, a big band or pop music: it is what the parts are written for, and the cheapest at every level. Start on a cornet for a brass band, or for a young child who struggles with the trumpet's length. Buy a flugelhorn as a second instrument once you play trumpet; it's lovely, but it isn't the one a teacher will ask for.
Where the numbers come from. Every B-flat trumpet, cornet and flugelhorn Thomann had in stock on November 3, 2026, from its partner feed, without sets and bundles. Bell sizes and bores are from Thomann's descriptions of the instruments named. Prices are Thomann's US-dollar prices.
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Denis Kataev runs AudioFu. Every night the site records the prices of more than 38,000 instruments and studio tools at Thomann, and he writes about what those numbers show: what got cheaper, what just arrived, and which discounts are real.
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