One of the most famous ragtime compositions, known for its iconic 'walking' bassline and syncopated melody. It represents the transition from classical piano traditions to early 20th-century American vernacular music.
Focus on rhythmic precision and the independent 'swing' between the steady bass octaves and the syncopated right-hand figures.
Comparable difficulty and character — good candidates for what to learn next.
12th Street Rag is rated Henle level 4 of 9 — intermediate repertoire, roughly ABRSM grades 5–6. In the RCM system it corresponds to about level 5.
You should be comfortable at Henle level 4 — meaning you can already play level 3–4 pieces cleanly. Learning it one level early is possible as a stretch piece, but more than that usually leads to months of frustration.
A typical performance of 12th Street Rag lasts about 3 minutes.
12th Street Rag is available as free public-domain sheet music on IMSLP — the score is linked directly from this page.
Pieces at a comparable difficulty and character include 11th Street Rag by Euday L. Bowman, 12 Variations on "Ah vous dirais-je, Maman" by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Alexander's Ragtime Band by Irving Berlin — see the full similar-pieces list on this page.