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Updated through 2024NTEE A · Arts, Culture & Humanities

Arts, Culture & Humanities nonprofitexecutive pay

Median top-executive pay across 17,106 arts, culture & humanities nonprofits, 2019 – 2024. Each organization is counted once at its most recent filing, using the highest-paid leader reported on IRS Form 990, Schedule J.

Organizations that promote the arts, culture, and the humanities, including performing and visual arts, museums, historical societies, and humanities programs.

Median executive pay
$58,760
The typical arts, culture & humanities nonprofit's highest-paid executive earns $58,760 in total reported compensation.
25th pct
$23k
75th pct
$106k
90th pct
$191k
17,106 organizations · 2019 – 2024
Percentile distribution

Where the middle 50% lands.

Half earn between $23k and $106k. That band is the interquartile range. The 90th percentile sits at $191k, roughly 3.2 times the median. That upper tail is where the largest organizations cluster.

PercentileTotal compMeans
90th$190,896Top 10% of earners
75th$105,94425% earn more than this
50th · median$58,760The typical executive
25th$22,69025% earn less than this
10th$7,10010% 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 arts, culture & humanities nonprofits in that revenue range.

Revenue band25thMedian75thOrgs
Under $1M$14k$37,456$67k11,916
$1M – $10M$87k$125,000$180k4,363
$10M – $100M$240k$342,226$522k774
$100M – $500M$569k$823,592$1.4M49
Revenue bands with fewer than 5 organizations are not shown.
Geography

Pay varies by state.

District of Columbia pays $59,352 more than the national median across arts, culture & humanities nonprofits.

By role

Benchmark a specific Arts, Culture & Humanities role

Drill into median pay for individual leadership roles within arts, culture & humanities nonprofits.

Board & trustee pay

Arts, Culture & Humanities board & trustee pay norms

9% of arts, culture & humanities nonprofits pay at least one board member or trustee, with a typical per-person payment of $16,516 across a median board of 4 paid members.

Organizations paying board members
9%
Median board pay
$16,516
Median paid board size
4
By filing type
Form 990: 10%
Form 990-EZ: 7%
Form 990-PF: 9%
Directory

Museums, performing arts organizations, historical societies, media outlets, and other nonprofits focused on arts, culture, and the humanities. Includes visual arts, music, theater, film, and cultural preservation. There are 43,040 arts, culture & humanities 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 Arts, Culture & Humanities

43,040 organizations · Page 100 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
THE CENTER FOR THE ARTS AT THE ARMORY INCSomervilleMA$1.4M2
HUTCHINSON'S HISTORIC FOX THEATRE INCHutchinsonKS$1.4M1
LARK THEATERLarkspurCA$1.4M1
Hidden Valley Music SeminarsCarmel ValleyCA$1.4M0
LEON D BLACK FOUNDATIONNew YorkNY$1.4M0
PERFORMING ARTS ACADEMYHighlands RanchCO$1.4M1
Shawl-Anderson Modern Dance CenterBerkeleyCA$1.4M5
Villa Finale Museum & GardensSan AntonioTX$1.4M1
LYNN MEADOWS DISCOVERY CENTERGulfportMS$1.4M1
JusticeAidWashingtonDC$1.4M0
RAGAMALA DANCEMinneapolisMN$1.4M4
PORTSMOUTH SUBMARINE & MARITIME ASSOCIATIONPortsmouthNH$1.4M0
BLISSFEST MUSIC ORGANIZATIONPetoskeyMI$1.4M0
COMMUNITY ARTS CENTERWallingfordPA$1.4M1
THE MARY FOUNDATION C/O WILLIAM MACFARLANERocky RiverOH$1.4M2
Open BookMinneapolisMN$1.4M0
COLONIAL DAMES OF AMERICANew YorkNY$1.4M2
THE BRONX DOCUMENTARY CENTERBronxNY$1.4M2
BALTIMORE HERITAGE AREA ASSOCIATION INCBaltimoreMD$1.4M1
THEATRE RALEIGH INCRaleighNC$1.4M2
STUDIO INCAMMINATIPhiladelphiaPA$1.4M2
Ballet Palm Beach IncPalm Beach GardensFL$1.4M0
KENTUCKY MUSIC EDUCATORS ASSOCIATION INCRichmondKY$1.4M0
STUDEBAKER NATIONAL MUSEUM INCSouth BendIN$1.4M1
OFFICE FOR PUBLIC ARTPittsburghPA$1.4M0
SALINA COMMUNITY THEATRE ASSOCIATIONSalinaKS$1.4M1
THE INDUSTRY PRODUCTIONS INCLos AngelesCA$1.4M0
NORTHERN CHUMASH TRIBAL COUNCILLos OsosCA$1.4M0
TRICYCLE THEATRE FOR YOUTHBentonvilleAR$1.4M1
CHILDREN'S MUSEUM OF MINOT INCMinotND$1.4M2
MUSIC CHANGING LIVESMoreno ValleyCA$1.4M0
TECO THEATRICAL PRODUCTIONS INCDallasTX$1.4M1
COLQUITTMILLER ARTS COUNCIL INCColquittGA$1.4M0
SOUTHWEST HISTORICAL FOUNDATIONArdmoreOK$1.4M0
APPALACHIAN THEATRE OF THE HIGH COUNTRY INCBooneNC$1.4M1
Three Rivers Young Peoples OrchestrasPittsburghPA$1.4M1
N1 FOUNDATIONBrooklynNY$1.4M2
WISCONSIN HUMANITIES COUNCIL INCMadisonWI$1.4M0
BRATTLE FILM FOUNDATION INCCambridgeMA$1.4M2
NATIONAL COUNCIL OF NIGERIAN MUSLIMS ORGANIZATIONS IN THE USAWashingtonDC$1.4M0
Esselen Tribe of Monterey CountyCarmel ValleyCA$1.4M3
THE THEATRE OF THE REPUBLICConwaySC$1.4M4
FRIENDS OF AMBLER FARM INCWiltonCT$1.4M1
THE ANGEL NYACK INCNyackNY$1.4M0
NORTHEAST INDIANA PUBLIC RADIO INCFort WayneIN$1.4M1
MICHIGAN SCHOOL BAND & ORCHESTRA ASSOCOkemosMI$1.3M1
VERMONT SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA ASSOCIATION INCBurlingtonVT$1.3M1
PEDERNALES CREATIVE ARTS ALLIANCE DBA OKTOBERFESTFredericksburgTX$1.3M0
ARTS CENTERCarrboroNC$1.3M1
CAYUGA MUSEUM OF HISTORY & ART INCAuburnNY$1.3M1