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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 112 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
Canzion Institute of MusicBaytownTX$1.2M1
HERSHEY REGION OF THE ANTIQUE AUTOMOBILE CLUB OF AMERICAHersheyPA$1.2M0
LYNDEN INCRiver HillsWI$1.2M1
YORK SYMPHONY ORCHESTRAYorkPA$1.2M2
SEE SCIENCE CENTER INCManchesterNH$1.2M1
NEW ORLEANS BALLET INC DBA NEW ORLEANS BALLET THEATRENew OrleansLA$1.2M3
PAN AFRICAN FILM FESTIVAL INCLos AngelesCA$1.2M0
VANGUARD THEATER COMPANYMontclairNJ$1.2M2
WILSON BREWER PARK DEPOT FOUNDATIONWebster CityIA$1.2M0
RAINIER OREGON HISTORICAL MUSEUMRainierOR$1.2M0
Geneva Historical SocietyGenevaNY$1.2M1
HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF BERKS COUNTYReadingPA$1.2M2
EUREKA SPRINGS SCHOOL OF THE ARTSEureka SpringsAR$1.2M1
WASHINGTON ART ASSOCIATION INCORPORATEDWashington DepotCT$1.2M1
BAKERSFIELD CIVIC LIGHT OPERA ASSOCIATIONBakersfieldCA$1.2M0
CHROMATIC BLACK COLLECTIVE INCAtlantaGA$1.2M1
TUCSON AUTO MUSEUM INCTucsonAZ$1.2M0
CONCERTO SOLOISTS CHAMBER ORCHESTRA OF PHILADELPHIAPhiladelphiaPA$1.2M1
Ten Thousand Things TheaterSt PaulMN$1.2M1
ATTACK THEATRE INCPittsburghPA$1.2M2
Fantasy Playhouse Childrens TheaterHuntsvilleAL$1.2M0
East Tennessee Historical Society IncKnoxvilleTN$1.2M1
TAMPA BAY BLUES FOUNDATION INC C/O CHARLES W ROSSSt PetersburgFL$1.2M0
ALLIANCE FRANCAISE DE SEATTLESeattleWA$1.2M1
THE GRAND OSHKOSH INCOshkoshWI$1.2M1
FUND TO CONSERVE US DIPLOMATIC TREASURES ABROADWashingtonDC$1.2M1
BREAD & PUPPET THEATRE INCGloverVT$1.2M7
Law and Society AssociationAmherstMA$1.2M1
Dalmatian-American Club of San Pedro IncSan PedroCA$1.2M0
THE BRONX COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETYBronxNY$1.2M1
BOULEVARDIAKansas CityMO$1.2M0
ELLIS-BEAUREGARD FOUNDATIONRocklandME$1.2M1
SANTA FE PRO MUSICA INCSanta FeNM$1.2M0
MOUNT HOPE TRUST IN BRISTOLBristolRI$1.2M0
Springfield Preservation & Revitalization Council IncJacksonvilleFL$1.2M0
WATKINS GLEN MOTOR RACING RESEARCH COUNCIL INCWatkins GlenNY$1.2M1
MARS HILL BROADCASTING CO INCSyracuseNY$1.2M1
Tall Ship Providence FoundationAlexandriaVA$1.2M1
NATIONAL FEDERATION OF MUSIC CLUBSGreenwoodIN$1.2M1
Manzanita HouseSpokaneWA$1.2M3
JAPANESE LANGUAGE SCHOOL OF GREATER BOSTON INCArlingtonMA$1.2M4
MUSLIM AMERICAN SOCIETY OF GREATER LA INCGarden GroveCA$1.2M0
SPRINGVILLE CENTER FOR THE ARTS INCSpringvilleNY$1.2M0
THE CORAL GABLES MUSEUM CORPCoral GablesFL$1.2M1
CHILDREN'SCHORUSOFWASHINGTONWashingtonDC$1.2M2
WEST EDGE OPERABerkeleyCA$1.2M0
STAR EDUCATIONAL MEDIA NETWORK INCFort WayneIN$1.2M1
BALLET SPARTANBURG INCSpartanburgSC$1.2M1
TRIPLEX CINEMA INCGreat BarringtonMA$1.2M0
THE BLOWING ROCK ART & HISTORY MUSEUMBlowing RockNC$1.2M1