What Under $1M in revenue means for COO pay
Nonprofits reporting under $1M in annual revenue are the smallest organizations in the dataset: local charities, single-program groups, and early-stage nonprofits. A COO here typically wears several hats, and compensation reflects the tighter budget.
Across all nonprofit COOs nationally, the median is $141,080. At organizations with under $1M in revenue, COOs earn about $106,245 less than that.
COO pay across organization sizes
How median COO compensation scales with nonprofit revenue. Each size band is its own benchmark.
| Org revenue | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th | Records |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Under $1M | $15,576 | $34,835 | $63,186 | $102,382 | 2,432 |
| $1M–$10M | $84,798 | $125,474 | $165,696 | $222,309 | 5,716 |
| $10M–$100M | $133,006 | $180,354 | $245,220 | $337,930 | 5,983 |
| $100M–$500M | $194,342 | $295,528 | $449,124 | $669,407 | 1,083 |
| $500M–$1B | $215,296 | $446,212 | $668,623 | $953,000 | 248 |
| Over $1B | $267,698 | $601,862 | $1,051,613 | $1,966,845 | 252 |
Frequently asked questions
- How much does a nonprofit COO at Under $1M organizations make?
- The median total compensation is $34,835, based on 2,432 IRS Form 990 filings from nonprofits with under $1M in annual revenue. The middle range runs from $15,576 to $63,186.
- Why does organization size affect COO pay so much?
- Larger nonprofits handle bigger budgets, larger teams, and more complex operations, so the COO role scales with them. Comparing pay within the same revenue band, rather than across all sizes, gives a far more accurate benchmark.
- What is the full pay range for a COO at Under $1M organizations?
- The 25th percentile is $15,576, the median is $34,835, the 75th is $63,186, and the 90th percentile reaches $102,382. Where a specific role lands depends on region, tenure, and how complex the organization is.
- How does this compare to the national COO median?
- The national median across all nonprofit sizes is $141,080. Filtering to organizations with under $1M in revenue isolates the size effect, which is one of the strongest drivers of nonprofit compensation.