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Updated through 2024NTEE D · Animal-Related

Animal-Related nonprofitexecutive pay

Median top-executive pay across 3,693 animal-related nonprofits, 2021 – 2024. Each organization is counted once at its most recent filing, using the highest-paid leader reported on IRS Form 990, Schedule J.

Organizations concerned with the protection and welfare of animals and wildlife, including shelters, sanctuaries, and veterinary services.

Median executive pay
$57,885
The typical animal-related nonprofit's highest-paid executive earns $57,885 in total reported compensation.
25th pct
$25k
75th pct
$105k
90th pct
$180k
3,693 organizations · 2021 – 2024
Percentile distribution

Where the middle 50% lands.

Half earn between $25k and $105k. That band is the interquartile range. The 90th percentile sits at $180k, roughly 3.1 times the median. That upper tail is where the largest organizations cluster.

PercentileTotal compMeans
90th$180,411Top 10% of earners
75th$105,14025% earn more than this
50th · median$57,885The typical executive
25th$25,00025% earn less than this
10th$9,29810% of executives earn less than this
By organization size

Bigger budgets, bigger paychecks.

Median executive pay rises with organization revenue. Each band shows the 25th, 50th, and 75th percentile of top-executive pay for animal-related nonprofits in that revenue range.

Revenue band25thMedian75thOrgs
Under $1M$15k$35,381$60k2,281
$1M – $10M$72k$105,004$149k1,163
$10M – $100M$200k$279,186$390k234
$100M – $500M$649k$777,005$945k14
Revenue bands with fewer than 5 organizations are not shown.
By role

Benchmark a specific Animal-Related role

Drill into median pay for individual leadership roles within animal-related nonprofits.

Board & trustee pay

Animal-Related board & trustee pay norms

6% of animal-related nonprofits pay at least one board member or trustee, with a typical per-person payment of $25,836 across a median board of 3 paid members.

Organizations paying board members
6%
Median board pay
$25,836
Median paid board size
3
By filing type
Form 990: 7%
Form 990-EZ: 4%
Form 990-PF: 10%
Directory

Animal shelters, wildlife sanctuaries, veterinary services, humane societies, and animal rights organizations. Covers companion animal welfare, wildlife rehabilitation, and animal-assisted therapy. There are 14,928 animal-related organizations in our database with compensation data from IRS Form 990 filings. Use the table below to browse them, or sort by revenue, location, or number of reported executives.

Organizations in Animal-Related

14,928 organizations · Page 1 of 299

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
NATIONAL FISH AND WILDLIFE FOUNDATIONWashingtonDC$513.2M11
THE AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR THE PREVENTION OF CRUELTY TO ANIMALSNew YorkNY$446.1M14
ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF SAN DIEGOSan DiegoCA$437.6M12
Wildlife Conservation SocietyBronxNY$389.2M15
Humane World for Animals IncWashingtonDC$207.9M18
JOHNNY MORRIS' OZARKS HERITAGE PRESERVESpringfieldMO$168M5
GEORGIA AQUARIUM INC & SUBSIDIARYAtlantaGA$165.7M26
Ahimsa FoundationNiwotCO$160.2M3
NATIONAL WILDLIFE FEDERATIONRestonVA$156.4M18
Monterey Bay Aquarium FoundationMontereyCA$155.9M18
BEST FRIENDS ANIMAL SOCIETYKanabUT$148.3M20
MASSACHUSETTS SOCIETY FOR THE PREVENTION OF CRUELTY TO ANIMALSBostonMA$144.8M12
Chicago Zoological SocietyBrookfieldIL$108M12
SHEDD AQUARIUM SOCIETYChicagoIL$102M14
ROCKY MOUNTAIN ELK FOUNDATION INCMissoulaMT$100.1M10
American Kennel Club IncNew YorkNY$99.6M25
DENVER DUMB FRIENDS LEAGUEDenverCO$92.9M7
THE ANIMAL MEDICAL CENTERNew YorkNY$91.9M10
COLUMBUS ZOOLOGICAL PARK ASSOCIATIONPowellOH$88.8M10
TROUT UNLIMITED INCArlingtonVA$83.5M9
Houston Zoo IncHoustonTX$82.5M9
OMAHA ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETYOmahaNE$82M10
PEOPLE FOR THE ETHICAL TREATMENT OF ANIMALS INCNorfolkVA$77.2M8
GREAT LAKES FISHERY COMMISSIONAnn ArborMI$75.6M6
NATIONAL AQUARIUM INCBaltimoreMD$74.4M11
REWILDAustinTX$74.2M8
SAN DIEGO HUMANE SOCIETY & SPCASan DiegoCA$72.9M8
ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF CINCINNATICincinnatiOH$69.4M11
PETSMART CHARITIES INCPhoenixAZ$68.7M0
GOVERNORS ISLAND CORPORATIONNew YorkNY$66.1M9
WOODLAND PARK ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETYSeattleWA$64.7M15
SAN ANTONIO ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETYSan AntonioTX$63.8M10
Audubon Nature Institute IncNew OrleansLA$61.3M9
DENVER ZOOLOGICAL FOUNDATIONDenverCO$60.1M15
AQUARIUM OF THE PACIFIC CORPORATIONLong BeachCA$59.3M13
THE SAINT LOUIS ZOO ASSOCIATIONSaint LouisMO$58.5M10
WILDLIFE CONSERVATION NETWORK INCSan FranciscoCA$56.7M7
LINCOLN PARK ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETYChicagoIL$56.4M8
NEW ENGLAND AQUARIUM CORPORATIONBostonMA$54.6M17
DETROIT ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETYRoyal OakMI$54.3M12
FRIENDS OF THE ZOO INC OF KANSAS CITY MISSOURI C/O LINDA FALKKansas CityMO$53.6M9
THE SEATTLE AQUARIUM SOCIETYSeattleWA$53.3M13
THE FORT WORTH ZOOLOGICAL ASSOCIATIONFort WorthTX$52.8M8
Arizona Humane SocietyPhoenixAZ$52.2M11
INDIANAPOLIS ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY INCIndianapolisIN$50.1M9
THE TOLEDO ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETYToledoOH$50M9
ARIZONA CENTER FOR NATURE CONSERVATIONPhoenixAZ$49.3M8
Lowry Park Zoological Society of Tampa IncTampaFL$48.6M10
PAWS CHICAGOChicagoIL$47M8
THE SAN FRANCISCO SOCIETY FOR THE PREVENTION OF CRUELTY TO ANIMALSSan FranciscoCA$46M17