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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 172 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
MOSAIC AMERICASan JoseCA$640k0
THE JEWISH HISTORY MUSEUMTucsonAZ$640k1
ARM OF HOPE INCElizabethtownPA$640k0
Hot Springs Documentary Film InstituteHot Springs National PAR$640k0
Round Canopy Parachuting Team - USA Foundation IncPalatkaFL$640k0
RADIO FREE GEORGIA BROADCASTING ORGANIZATION INCAtlantaGA$640k1
WAREHOUSE DALLAS ART FOUNDATIONDallasTX$640k0
FLOYD COUNTY ENDOWMENT FUND INCCharles CityIA$640k0
THE BATTALION DRUM & BUGLE CORPS INCSalt Lake CityUT$640k1
EDUSEEDWashingtonDC$640k1
BLACK HERITAGE TRAIL OF NEW HAMPSHIRE INCPortsmouthNH$640k1
Scripture Memory Fellowship InternationaDallasTX$640k2
Walla Walla Symphony Society IncWalla WallaWA$639k0
Wings World Quest IncNew YorkNY$639k1
DENTON COMMUNITY THEATREDentonTX$639k1
DRACUT ACCESS TELEVISION INCDracutMA$639k1
PERFORMANCE GARAGE INCPhiladelphiaPA$639k0
OVERSEAS RADIO AND TELEVISION INCKirklandWA$639k3
GOLD COAST JAZZ SOCIETY INCFt LauderdaleFL$639k1
HAWAII GLOBAL EDUCATION FOUNDATIONHonoluluHI$639k1
MUSLIM COMMUNITY SUPPORT SERVICESBurlingtonMA$638k0
BARN LOT THEATRE INCEdmontonKY$638k1
ROBERT H JACKSON CENTER INCJamestownNY$638k1
CRIPPLE CREEK DISTRICT MUSEUM INCCripple CreekCO$638k1
LONGMONT SYMPHONY SOCIETY INCLongmontCO$638k0
Queer Women of Color Media Arts ProjectSan FranciscoCA$638k2
LAGUNA PLEIN AIR PAINTERS ASSOCIATIONLaguna BeachCA$637k2
THE HEGELER CARUS FOUNDATIONPeruIL$637k0
ASSOCIATION FOR DEVELOPMENT OF DRAMATIC ARTS INCNew YorkNY$637k1
HERITAGE SYLVANIA INCSylvaniaOH$637k2
Cypress Creek Fine Art AssociationSpringTX$637k2
NAI-NI CHEN DANCE COMPANYFort LeeNJ$637k1
OHR HATZAFUN PRODUCTIONS D/B/A HIDDEN LIGHT INSTITUTEGreenwood VillageCO$637k0
MACE'S LANE COMMUNITY CENTERCambridgeMD$637k0
Backstage Theatre IncBreckenridgeCO$637k0
HOPE CENTER FOR ARTS AND TECHNOLOGY INCSharonPA$636k2
Contra Costa Civic TheatreEl CerritoCA$636k2
THE LANGUAGE TREEColumbiaMO$636k1
CLASSIC THEATRE OF MARYLAND INCAnnapolisMD$636k1
Johnson Hall IncGardinerME$636k1
THE CENTER FOR DYNAMIC LEARNING INCProvidenceRI$636k1
FESTIVALS IN MERIDENMeridenCT$636k0
EAU CLAIRE ASSOCIATION OF MUSEUMS INCEau ClaireWI$636k1
FRIENDS OF THE FELT ESTATEHollandMI$636k1
CATLOW 1927 FOUNDATIONBarringtonIL$636k0
GREAT COMMISSION BROADCASTING CORP ATTN BROC HAMPSMIREQuincyIL$636k0
HARRYBERTOIA FOUNDATIONSt GeorgeUT$636k1
INIS NUA THEATRE COMPANYPhiladelphiaPA$636k0
FAIRFIELD TEMPO CLUBFairfieldOH$635k0
Oil Painters of AmericaCrystal LakeIL$635k1