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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 125 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
Elevator Repair Service Theater IncNew YorkNY$1M2
AMERICAN PRECISION MUSEUM INCWindsorVT$1M1
404 FOUNDATION INCCamarilloCA$1M0
PACIFIC OPERA PROJECTLos AngelesCA$1M2
ELMHURST ART MUSEUMElmhurstIL$1M3
BIRMINGHAM CHILDREN'S THEATRE INCBirminghamAL$1M1
Asian Pacific Islander Cultural CenterSan FranciscoCA$1M1
CARA MIA THEATRE CODallasTX$1M1
ROCKY MOUNTAIN PUBLIC MEDIA QALICB INCDenverCO$1M2
DES MOINES FILM SOCIETYDes MoinesIA$1M1
Out of Hand TheaterAtlantaGA$1M4
Huntington Children's Museum IncHuntingtonWV$1M0
HEC-TVBridgetonMO$1M0
DALLAS CHAMBER SYMPHONYDallasTX$1M2
MOVEMENT RESEARCH INCNew YorkNY$1M1
Ukrainian American Youth Association IncNew YorkNY$1M1
CLEVELAND FESTIVAL OF ART AND TECHNOLOGY INCClevelandOH$1M1
LAKESHORE PLAYERS INCWhite Bear LakeMN$1M1
MAYTEN FOUNDATION BTLos AngelesCA$1M0
ELKHART AMP GROUP INCElkhartIN$1M1
Frank and Goldyne Green Cultural Land ConservancySeattleWA$1M0
White Plains Performing Arts CenterWhite PlainsNY$1M0
Western Inspirational Broadcasters IncCarson CityNV$999k1
REDBUD RESOURCE GROUPSanta RosaCA$999k1
Miami Dance Project IncMiamiFL$999k1
FIRST STATE BALLET THEATRE INCWilmingtonDE$999k2
LEXINGTON HISTORICAL SOCIETYLexingtonMA$999k1
JAZZARTS CHARLOTTECharlotteNC$998k1
THE LITTLE ORCHESTRA SOCIETYORPHEON INCNew YorkNY$998k1
Point Arena Lighthouse Keepers IncPoint ArenaCA$998k2
CENTRO CULTURALE ITALIANO DI BUFFALO INCBuffaloNY$997k0
The National Quilt Museum IncPaducahKY$997k1
COOK COUNTY COMMUNITY RADIOGrand MaraisMN$997k1
Root DivisionSan FranciscoCA$997k1
ACCESS GALLERYDenverCO$997k0
Gualala Arts IncGualalaCA$997k1
ORCAS CENTEREastsoundWA$996k1
Open Source Gallery IncBrooklynNY$996k1
VICTORIA SYMPHONY SOCIETY INCVictoriaTX$996k0
NORTHWEST CHOIRSSeattleWA$996k2
MAROON ARTS GROUPColumbusOH$995k1
HAMMOND BLESSED 25THSherman OaksCA$995k0
DR LOUIS GUSS FOUNDATION FOR CHILDRENBuena ParkCA$995k0
CREATIVE MINDS NYC INCNew YorkNY$995k0
BALLET PENSACOLA INCPensacolaFL$995k1
KREWE OF RED BEANSNew OrleansLA$994k0
HISTORIC PALACE INCLockportNY$994k0
AFRICAN-AMERICAN SHAKESPEARE COMPANYSan FranciscoCA$994k1
REPERTORY DANCE THEATRESalt Lake CityUT$994k1
CREATIVE ARTS CENTER OF DALLAS INCDallasTX$994k1