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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 173 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
TAIKOPROJECTLos AngelesCA$635k0
Grand County Blues SocietyWinter ParkCO$635k0
THE LIVING ARTS & SCIENCE CENTER INCLexingtonKY$635k1
THE NATIONAL ARTS PROGRAM FOUNDATIONMalvernPA$635k2
ARIZONA FRIENDS OF CHAMBER MUSICTucsonAZ$635k2
Stumptown StagesLake OswegoOR$635k1
MAGICAL THEATRE COMPANYBarbertonOH$635k0
ALL FOUNDATION OF WASHINGTONSeattleWA$634k0
MAHCHIWMINAHNAHTIK CHIPPEWA AND CREE LANGUAGE REVITALIZATIONBox ElderMT$634k0
Catastrophic Theatre IncHoustonTX$634k2
CHAMBER DANCE PROJECTWashingtonDC$634k1
RIVERSIDE SYMPHONY INCNew YorkNY$634k1
AURORA SENTINEL COMMUNITY MEDIAAuroraCO$633k0
EMPORIA ARTS COUNCILEmporiaKS$633k0
THE STEAMER VIRGINIA V FOUNDATIONSeattleWA$633k2
NATIONAL SOCIETY OF THE COLONIAL DAMES OF AMERICA IN THE STATE OF TXAustinTX$633k0
FORT KIDSFort SmithAR$633k0
STAGE RIGHT INCGreensburgPA$633k0
THE DRIVER OPERA HOUSE RESTORATION INCDarlingtonWI$633k0
AMERICAN CLOCK AND WATCH MUSEUMINCBristolCT$632k1
ODESSA COUNCIL FOR THE ARTS & HUMANITIESOdessaTX$632k1
RIVERSIDE THEATRE WORKS INCHyde ParkMA$632k0
LT MICHAEL P MURPHY NAVY SEAL MUSEUMWest SayvilleNY$632k1
FOUNTAIN INN MUSEUM INCORPORATEDFountain InnSC$632k0
FRIENDS OF KWMU INCSaint LouisMO$632k0
Camerata Singers of Long BeachLong BeachCA$632k1
GRAMERCY PARK BLOCK ASSOC INCNew YorkNY$632k1
PERSIAN CULTURAL CENTERSan DiegoCA$632k0
COMMUNITY THEATRE OF GREENSBORO INCGreensboroNC$632k2
PULSE PRODUCTIONSKaneoheHI$632k0
THE RIFFRAFF ARTS COLLECTIVE INCPrincetonWV$632k1
Centro Cultural Aztlan IncSan AntonioTX$631k1
CIRCUS HARMONYFlorissantMO$631k1
Texas Federation of Womens Clubs Historical FoundationAustinTX$631k0
CROATIAN CULTURAL CENTER OF CHICAGOChicagoIL$631k0
HAYWARD AREA HISTORICAL SOCIETYHaywardCA$631k0
CREATURE ARTSCarrolltonTX$631k0
CINCINNATI PRESERVATION ASSOCIATIONCincinnatiOH$631k1
Submarine Force Library & Museum Association IncGrotonCT$631k1
THE ART THERAPY PROJECT CORPORATIONNew YorkNY$631k1
CULTURAL OFFICE OF THE PIKES PEAK REGIONColorado SpringsCO$631k1
BAND OF ANGELS CORPOverland ParkKS$630k0
Spokane Symphony AssociatesSpokaneWA$630k0
WATERFORD FOUNDATION INCWaterfordVA$630k1
MUSIC THEATRE OF IDAHO INCNampaID$630k0
Extensions Dance CompanyChicagoIL$630k1
SPRINGFIELD BALLET INCSpringfieldMO$630k2
COLORADO SPORTS HALL OF FAME INCDenverCO$630k1
Moving History IncBaltimoreMD$629k1
LITHUANIAN MAIRONIS COMMUNITY SCHOOL OF LEMONTLemontIL$629k0