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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 166 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
Old Settler's Music Festival IncLockhartTX$676k0
NATIONAL MOUNTED WARFARE FOUNDATIONCopperas CoveTX$676k0
Blackfeet Eco KnowledgeBrowningMT$676k2
THE CALIFORNIA THEATRE OF SANTA ROSASanta RosaCA$675k1
ILLUSION THEATER AND SCHOOL INCMinneapolisMN$675k2
CALICO ROCK COMMUNITY FOUNDATION INCCalico RockAR$675k1
Arts Council for Wyoming CountyPerryNY$675k1
Museum of East TexasLufkinTX$675k1
LINEAGE PERFORMING ARTS CENTERPasadenaCA$675k0
NEW HAMPSHIRE AVIATION HISTORICAL SOCIETYLondonderryNH$675k1
MADISON YOUTH ARTS CENTER INCMadisonWI$674k0
ACAPPELLA MINISTRIES INCGoodlettsvilleTN$674k0
CENTER FOR MAINE CONTEMPORARY ARTRocklandME$674k0
CONNECTICUT RADIO FELLOWSHIP INCMiddletownCT$674k0
Maryland Technology Museum IncHunt ValleyMD$674k1
Muwekma Ohlone Tribe IncMantecaCA$674k1
DEMUTH FOUNDATIONLancasterPA$674k1
Historic St Lukes RestorationSmithfieldVA$673k1
OUTAGAMIE COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETYAppletonWI$673k1
THE LEHMAN COLLEGE ART GALLERY INCBronxNY$673k5
RAIR INCPhiladelphiaPA$673k1
MANCHESTER MUSIC FESTIVAL INCManchesterVT$673k2
NEIGHBORHOOD MUSIC SCHOOL ASSOCIATIONLos AngelesCA$673k1
FRAMINGHAM PUBLIC ACCESS CORPORATIONFraminghamMA$673k0
National Association of Theatre Owners Cinema Foundation IncLos AngelesCA$673k4
AUBURN CIVIC SYMPHONYAuburnCA$673k0
HISTORIC MORGANTOWN POST OFFICE BUILDING INCMorgantownWV$672k0
PORTLAND PIANO INTERNATIONALPortlandOR$672k1
SAN FRANCISCO YOUTH THEATRESan FranciscoCA$672k3
ASMBLY MAKERSPACE INCAustinTX$672k0
PROARTS INCKiheiHI$672k0
CONFLUENCES INC CONFLUENCE PROJECTVancouverWA$672k2
Kitchen Theatre Company IncIthacaNY$672k1
PARKER THEATRE OF THE ARTSSalt Lake CityUT$672k1
HISTORIC VOGUE THEATRE OF MANISTEEManisteeMI$672k0
NASHVILLE FILM FESTIVALNashvilleTN$672k1
CHICAGO AVENUE FIRE ARTS CENTERMinneapolisMN$671k0
TEXAS MUSEUMS & HALLS OF FAME FOUNDATIONWacoTX$671k0
BAY AREA JAZZ AND ARTS INCOaklandCA$671k1
BIAFRA REPUBLIC GOVERNMENT INBaltimoreMD$671k0
AUSTIN CHAMBER MUSIC CENTERAustinTX$671k0
WOBURN PUBLIC MEDIA CENTER INCWoburnMA$671k8
Dripping Springs Band Boosters IncDripping SpgsTX$671k0
Santa Monica Arts Parents AssociationSanta MonicaCA$671k0
FRIENDS OF THE CHINESE AMERICAN MUSEUMLos AngelesCA$671k1
Fargo Theatre Management CorporationFargoND$671k2
Nora Chipaumire IncBrooklynNY$671k2
FEDERATION OF INDIAN ASSOCIATIONS INCJackson HeightsNY$671k0
DIASPORA VIBE CULTURAL ARTS INCUBATORMiamiFL$670k2
ONEFEST LTDCadottWI$670k0