Where the middle 50% lands.
Half earn between $41k and $186k. That band is the interquartile range. The 90th percentile sits at $314k, roughly 3.0 times the median. That upper tail is where the largest organizations cluster.
| Percentile | Total comp | Means |
|---|---|---|
| 90th | $313,504 | Top 10% of earners |
| 75th | $186,070 | 25% earn more than this |
| 50th · median | $104,990 | The typical executive |
| 25th | $41,070 | 25% earn less than this |
| 10th | $9,303 | 10% of executives earn less than this |
How the package is built.
The typical pay structure across 651 organizations with full Schedule J reporting (33% of the 1,956 orgs in this slice). Each share is the average across orgs of the fraction of total comp that goes to this component, so the bar fills 100%.
The number in context.
Every row links to its own dedicated benchmark page.
All figures are median total reported compensation · IRS Form 990, Schedule J
Pay varies by state.
District of Columbia pays $97,510 more than the median Executive Director compensation in employment nationally.
The ten highest-paid employment Executive Directors by filing.
| # | Organization | Location | Total compensation | Filing year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | The Business Roundtable Inc | Washington, DC | $4,540,528 | 2024 |
| 02 | American Investment Council | Washington, DC | $3,568,134 | 2023 |
| 03 | National Music Publishers Association Inc | Washington, DC | $2,394,275 | 2023 |
| 04 | American Society For Training And | Alexandria, VA | $1,287,018 | 2023 |
| 05 | American Financial Services Association | Washington, DC | $1,171,280 | 2023 |
| 06 | Cambria County Association For The Blind | Johnstown, PA | $957,283 | 2024 |
| 07 | Goodwill Industries Of Southeastern | Milwaukee, WI | $908,671 | 2024 |
| 08 | The Fedcap Group Inc | New York, NY | $891,927 | 2023 |
| 09 | Goodwill Industries Of The | Portland, OR | $883,001 | 2024 |
| 10 | National Football League Players | Washington, DC | $872,765 | 2023 |
Total includes base, bonus, other reportable, and deferred/retirement compensation per Schedule J.
What does a $X org pay?
Adjust the slider to your organization's revenue. The median Executive Director compensation for employment nonprofits in that revenue band updates live.