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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 147 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
RHINEBECK PERFORMING ARTS INCRhinebeckNY$804k2
CONEY ISLAND USABrooklynNY$804k2
LEAGUE OF CHICAGO THEATRES FOUNDATIONChicagoIL$804k0
AMERICAN ORFF-SCHULWERK ASSOCIATIONMayfield HtsOH$804k1
WASHINGTON PROJECT FOR THE ARTS INCWashingtonDC$804k1
Friends of Rancho San PedroRancho DominguezCA$803k0
SHEILA K OBRIEN FOUNDATION C/O SHEILA K OBRIENDenverCO$803k0
LUX CENTER FOR THE ARTSLincolnNE$803k1
VOICES for Alabama's ChildrenMontgomeryAL$803k1
Alf Engen Ski Museum Foundation IncPark CityUT$803k0
RUBICON PRODUCTIONS INCSparks GlencoeMD$803k1
HISTORIC BETHEL BAPTIST CHURCH COMMUNITY RESTORATION FUNDBirminghamAL$803k0
SOUNDS ACADEMYPhoenixAZ$802k1
Playhouse ArtsArcataCA$802k0
ROCK CATS RESCUE INCBrooksGA$802k1
GREATER ANCHORAGE INCAnchorageAK$802k1
GRIOT ARTS INCClarksdaleMS$802k2
MUSIC IN THE MOUNTAINSNevada CityCA$802k0
HINDI USA INCPembertonNJ$802k0
EGO PO INCPhiladelphiaPA$802k0
REDLANDS SYMPHONY ASSOCIATIONRedlandsCA$802k0
STRAND THEATER INITIATIVEZelienoplePA$802k1
The House of SongsBentonvilleAR$802k1
MARTIN CENTRE PRESERVATION COMPANY INCDouglasGA$801k0
CROCODILE RIVER MUSIC INCWorcesterMA$801k1
BOYNTON CULTURAL CENTRE INCBoynton BeachFL$801k1
Blue Barn TheatreOmahaNE$801k1
The Defiant Requiem FoundationWashingtonDC$801k2
ISHIDA DANCE COMPANY INCHoustonTX$801k2
Graham Motor Museum IncEau ClaireWI$801k0
BOSTON MODERN ORCHESTRA PROJECT INCMaldenMA$801k1
Splinter Art and Community FundTucsonAZ$800k1
51 STEPS TO FREEDOMWashingtonDC$800k0
GRAND THEATRE FOUNDATION INC C/O SETH MILLERSalt Lake CityUT$799k0
WAWASHKAMO GOLF CLUBMacKinac IslandMI$799k0
OMAHA COMMUNITY PLAYHOUSE FOUNDATIONOmahaNE$799k0
JEFFERSON AVENUE CENTER FOR LEARNING & ARTSColumbusOH$799k1
SOUTH TEXAS SYMPHONY ASSOCIATION INCMcAllenTX$799k1
VOKKALIGARA PARISHAT OF AMERICANapervilleIL$799k0
KITTITAS COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETYEllensburgWA$799k0
NORTHWEST OKLAHOMA RURAL DEVELOPMENT FOUNDATIONBuffaloOK$799k0
LISMORE ROAD INCNew YorkNY$798k0
FRIENDS OF MUSIC HALLCincinnatiOH$798k1
WISCONSIN ACADEMY OF SCIENCES ARTS AND LETTERSMadisonWI$798k1
CROSSROADS OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION INCTrentonNJ$798k1
FAIR LADY PRODUCTIONSNapervilleIL$798k2
YOUNG AT ART OF BROWARD INCPlantationFL$797k1
A PHILIP RANDOLPH PULLMAN PORTER MUSEUMChicagoIL$797k2
VIRGINIA MUSIC EDUCATORS ASSOCIATIOWilliamsburgVA$797k3
HONOR FLIGHT KERN COUNTYBakersfieldCA$797k0