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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 108 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
UC PRESS FOUNDATIONOaklandCA$1.2M0
THE MITFORD MUSEUMHudsonNC$1.2M1
FRIENDS OF ALICE AUSTEN HOUSE INCStaten IslandNY$1.2M1
The Museum At Belcourt IncNorth KingstownRI$1.2M0
FORUM FOR CULTURAL ENGAGEMENTBrooklynNY$1.2M2
NATIONAL SOCIETY OF THE COLONIAL DAMES OF AMERICA IN THE STATE OF GASavannahGA$1.2M1
FORT BEND HISTORY ASSOCIATIONRichmondTX$1.2M0
ARTS CENTER OF KERSHAW COUNTY INCCamdenSC$1.2M1
GARDENA VALLEY JAPANESE CULTURAL INSTITUTEGardenaCA$1.2M1
MISSOURI SPORTS HALL OF FAMESpringfieldMO$1.2M2
THE CAPE COD MUSEUM OF ART INCDennisMA$1.2M0
THE LAMP THEATRE CORPIrwinPA$1.2M0
DIABLO BALLETWalnut CreekCA$1.2M2
DISCOVERING AMISTAD INCNew HavenCT$1.2M1
GRANDIN THEATRE FOUNDATION INCRoanokeVA$1.2M1
THEATRE ART GALLERIES INCHigh PointNC$1.2M1
WHITE COLUMNS INCNew YorkNY$1.2M1
INFINITY SCIENCE CENTER INCPearlingtonMS$1.2M1
CHINATOWN COMMUNITY LAND TRUST INCBostonMA$1.2M1
THEATRE HORIZON INCNorristownPA$1.2M4
MAC-HAYDN THEATRE INCChathamNY$1.2M1
AVENUE OF THE ARTS INCPhiladelphiaPA$1.2M1
POLISH HERITAGE CENTER AT PANNA MARIA FOUNDATIONPanna MariaTX$1.2M1
Austin History Center Association IncAustinTX$1.2M0
REMAINDERS CREATIVE REUSE INCPasadenaCA$1.2M5
SHARLOT HALL HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF AZPrescottAZ$1.2M0
FINGER LAKES CULTURAL & NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUMBranchportNY$1.2M1
THE BRICKLos AngelesCA$1.2M2
DUMBARTON ARTS AND EDUCATION INCWashingtonDC$1.2M2
TOTEM POLE PLAYHOUSEFayettevillePA$1.2M1
American Bach SoloistsSan FranciscoCA$1.2M0
AMERICAN STUDIOGig HarborWA$1.2M1
UNIVERSAL CHILDREN'S CREATIONS ART ACADEMYLas VegasNV$1.2M0
CHICAGO WOODMAN FOUNDATION INCBelenNM$1.2M0
BRECKENRIDGE HISTORYBreckenridgeCO$1.2M1
ANCHORAGE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRAAnchorageAK$1.2M0
COPPER CANYON PRESSPort TownsendWA$1.2M1
CHEYENNE FRONTIER DAYS OLD WEST MUSEUMCheyenneWY$1.2M2
THE COUNTRY PLAYHOUSEHoustonTX$1.2M1
LINCOLN ORCHESTRA ASSOCIATIONLincolnNE$1.2M2
DULUTH-SUPERIOR SYMPHONY ASSOCIATIONDuluthMN$1.2M2
RAILROADERS HERITAGE CORPORATIONAltoonaPA$1.2M0
KBTC ASSOCIATIONTacomaWA$1.2M2
VIRGINIA MUSEUM OF ANIMAL ARTCharlottesvilleVA$1.2M3
Wyoming Humanities CouncilLaramieWY$1.2M1
WATERSIDE WORKSHOPSBerkeleyCA$1.2M0
Piikani Lodge Health InstituteBrowningMT$1.2M1
American Studies AssociationSpokaneWA$1.2M2
Sonoma Valley Museum of ArtSonomaCA$1.2M2
AMERICAN DANCE COMPETITION INCSt PetersburgFL$1.2M2