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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 156 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
The Civilians IncBrooklynNY$739k1
AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF ARCHITECTURE STUDENTS INCWashingtonDC$739k4
BUILDING YOUTH THROUGH MUSICTacomaWA$739k1
HIGHLAND GOLF AND COUNTRY CLUB FOUNDATION INCIndianapolisIN$739k0
FREDERICKSBURG THEATER COMPANYFredericksburgTX$739k0
SUSQUEHANNA ART MUSEUMHarrisburgPA$739k1
VERMONT FOLKLIFE CENTERBurlingtonVT$739k0
FURALITY INCOrlandoFL$739k1
The Theater Bug IncGoodlettsvilleTN$739k0
FRIENDS OF THE CUMBRES & TOLTEC SCENIC RAILROAD INCAlbuquerqueNM$739k1
FRIENDS OF GOETHE INCAtlantaGA$739k1
ELECTRONIC ARTS INTERMIX INCNew YorkNY$738k1
Newburyport Maritime Society IncNewburyportMA$738k2
FOUNDATION FOR THE EXHIBITION OF PHOTOGRAPHYMinneapolisMN$738k1
MUSIC IS EXTRAORDINARY INCEmeryvilleCA$738k1
THE BLACK SCHOOL INCNew OrleansLA$737k1
CORNERSTONES COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPSSanta FeNM$737k2
BALLET VERO BEACH INCVero BeachFL$737k2
CENTER FOR FIGURATIVE PAINTING INCNew YorkNY$737k0
CHELSEA ART THEATER INCChapel HillNC$737k1
CHORISTERS GUILDDallasTX$737k1
THE HOUSE FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS INCNew YorkNY$737k2
TREAD OF PIONEERS HISTORICAL COMMISSIONSteamboat SpringsCO$737k1
ARTS FOR ART INCNew YorkNY$737k2
HICKORY COMMUNITY THEATRE INCHickoryNC$736k1
BALLET QUAD CITIESRock IslandIL$736k0
OXFORD COMMUNITY CENTER INCOxfordMD$736k0
Art For The JourneyMidlothianVA$736k0
The Saint Augustine Historical SocietySaint AugustineFL$735k0
PLAYGROUND FOUNDATIONRenoNV$735k0
INTERACT INCPhiladelphiaPA$735k1
THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF MATRIMONIAL LAWYERS FOUNDATIONChicagoIL$735k1
EPIPHANY STUDIO PRODUCTIONSInver Grove HeightsMN$735k1
MESA REFUGE A NONPROFIT CORPORATIONPoint Reyes StationCA$735k1
VILLAGE THEATER COMPANYSewickleyPA$735k1
Foundation for Rational Economics and Education IncLake JacksonTX$735k1
PEABODY HISTORICAL SOCIETY & MUSEUMPeabodyMA$735k0
THE PHIL SCHAAP FOUNDATION INCNew YorkNY$735k0
Richard W Erickson FoundationKaysvilleUT$735k7
CMA-CLEV MUS OF ART 2 GEN END TABrooklynOH$735k1
BOOK INDUSTRY STUDY GROUP INCNew YorkNY$735k1
HALL OF GIANTS - THE ENTREPRENEURS THAT MADE AMERICA INCChicagoIL$735k1
La Pea Cultural Center IncBerkeleyCA$734k2
PRISMID INCPortlandOR$734k0
Springfield Art Association of Edwards PlaceSpringfieldIL$734k1
BLACK THEATRE TROUPE INCPhoenixAZ$734k0
SMACK MELLON STUDIOS INCBrooklynNY$734k0
ILLINOIS STATE POLICE HERITAGE FOUNDATIONSpringfieldIL$734k0
LOWER CAPE COMMUNITY ACCESS TELEVISION INCNorth EasthamMA$734k1
SONGS4SOLDIERS NFPColumbiaIL$734k0