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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 175 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
PANTHER CREEK VALLEY FOUNDATION INCLansfordPA$625k0
THE TRAILING OF THE SHEEP CULTURAL HERITAGE CENTER INCHaileyID$624k0
NATIONAL ANIMATION MUSEUMBurbankCA$624k2
HARVESTER ARTSWichitaKS$624k4
SUMMER OF THE ARTSIowa CityIA$624k1
YOUTH ORCHESTRA OF CENTRAL JERSEYHamilton SquareNJ$624k2
AFTER SCHOOL ARTS PROGRAM INCWashington DepotCT$624k1
LYRIC THEATRE COMPANYSouth BurlingtonVT$624k1
GASPARILLA FESTIVAL OF THE ARTS INCTampaFL$624k0
HAMILTON WINGSElburnIL$624k1
CAPITAL DISTRICT CELTIC CULTURAL ASSOCIATION INCAlbanyNY$624k2
HOPE ALIVE INCORPORATEDFremontCA$623k1
LEONORE S GERSHWIN 1987 FBO LIBRARY OF CONGRESS TRUST FUND BOARDSan FranciscoCA$623k1
WALKGOOD INCLos AngelesCA$623k2
MISSISSIPPI DELTA NATIONAL HERITAGE AREA PARTNERSHIP INCClevelandMS$623k0
BILINGUAL SCHOOL OF BUSINESS & PERFORMING ARTS INCMiamiFL$623k4
COMMUNITY ARTS CENTER OF CAMBRIA COUNTYJohnstownPA$623k1
SACRAMENTO YOUTH SYMPHONYSacramentoCA$623k0
ANDERSON COUNTY ARTS COUNCILAndersonSC$623k1
SHREVEPORT OPERAShreveportLA$623k0
STAGEWORKS THEATRE GROUP INCPompton LakesNJ$622k0
Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America IncSan FranciscoCA$622k1
DEVELOPING ARTISTS FOUNDATION INCJacksonvilleFL$622k1
GREENHOUSE THEATER CENTER NFP co WILLIAM SPATZPalm BeachFL$622k0
AIKEN CENTER FOR THE ARTS INCAikenSC$622k1
MAUI RESCUE MISSION INCKahuluiHI$622k1
BALLET CHELSEAChelseaMI$622k0
MILL TOWN PLAYERSPelzerSC$621k0
SOUND VIEW COMMUNITY MEDIA INCStratfordCT$621k1
HAWK FOUNDATION FOR RESEARCH & EDUCATION IN AFRICAN CULTUREOlympiaWA$621k0
HUNG ON TONG SOCIETYSan FranciscoCA$621k13
KITCHEN DOG THEATERDallasTX$621k1
Queer Kentucky IncCovingtonKY$621k0
RIVER RAISIN NATIONAL BATTLEFIELD PARK FOUNDATION INCMonroeMI$620k0
STAR STRUCK PRODUCTIONSFremontCA$620k0
ASHLAND COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETYAshlandOH$620k0
PENTACLE THEATRE INCSalemOR$620k2
Watertown Cable Access CorporationWatertownMA$620k1
HIMALAYAN ART RESOURCES INCNew YorkNY$620k0
CHARLES R WOOD THEATER INCGlens FallsNY$620k0
SONGBIRDS FOUNDATION INCChattanoogaTN$620k1
WYOMING DINOSAUR CENTER INCThermopolisWY$620k1
TEXAS ENERGY MUSEUM INCBeaumontTX$619k0
CAMARILLO WINGS ASSOCIATIONCamarilloCA$619k0
PRELUDE MUSIC FOUNDATIONHoustonTX$619k3
TERRE HAUTE SYMPHONY ASSOCIATITerre HauteIN$619k2
GRAYSTONE SOCIETY INCCoatesvillePA$619k1
SHAPIN-NICOLAS ART PROJECT FOUNDATION INC DBA SNAP FOUNDATIONLouisvilleKY$619k0
ARLEKIN PLAYERS THEATRENeedhamMA$619k2
REHOBOTH BEACH FILM SOCIETYRehoboth BeachDE$619k0