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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 18 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
TRUST FOR THE NATIONAL MALLWashingtonDC$10.2M10
AMERICAN PRESS INSTITUTE INCArlingtonVA$10.2M8
KOHLER TRUST FOR THE ARTS AND EDUCATIONKohlerWI$10.2M0
BALLET ARIZONAPhoenixAZ$10.2M3
FESTIVAL OF ARTS OF LAGUNA BEACHLaguna BeachCA$10.2M6
EARTHMOVING LEGACY CENTER INCElkaderIA$10.1M0
BOSTON LYRIC OPERA COMPANYBostonMA$10.1M9
ZEITERION THEATRE INCNew BedfordMA$10.1M3
NORTHWEST MARITIME CENTERPort TownsendWA$10.1M5
THE SOURCE FOR LEARNING INCRestonVA$10.1M6
GALLO CENTER FOR THE ARTS INCModestoCA$10.1M7
PACIFIC PUBLIC MEDIASeattleWA$10.1M4
Trinity Repertory CompanyProvidenceRI$10.1M3
SOCIETY OF THE THIRD STREET MUSIC SCHOOL SETTLEMENTNew YorkNY$10.1M8
TEXAS DENTAL ASSOCIATIONAustinTX$10M12
MCNAY ART MUSEUMSan AntonioTX$10M4
ASIAN PACIFIC INSTITUTE ON GENDER-BASED VIOLENCESan FranciscoCA$10M5
Chicago Children's MuseumChicagoIL$10M5
Indiana Repertory Theatre IncIndianapolisIN$10M3
Houston Symphony EndowmentHoustonTX$10M2
SOUTH COAST REPERTORY INCCosta MesaCA$10M7
ORLANDO BALLET INCOrlandoFL$10M2
SUN 'N FUN FLY-IN INCLakelandFL$10M4
IOWA PUBLIC RADIO INCDes MoinesIA$10M3
NEW ORLEANS MUSEUM OF ARTNew OrleansLA$10M5
ESPLANADE ASSOCIATION INCBostonMA$9.9M1
WHIMSADOODLE INCKansas CityMO$9.9M3
GRAND RAPIDS SYMPHONY SOCIETYGrand RapidsMI$9.9M3
BALLET METROPOLITAN INCColumbusOH$9.9M2
TELFAIR MUSEUM OF ART INCSavannahGA$9.8M3
ARTS UNITED OF GREATER FORT WAYNE INCFort WayneIN$9.8M1
FRIENDS OF OETA INCOklahoma CityOK$9.8M1
PACIFIC FLEET SUBMARINE MEMORIAL ASSOCHonoluluHI$9.8M2
NORTHLIGHT THEATRE INCSkokieIL$9.8M2
LOCKWOOD-MATHEWS MANSION MUSEUM OF NORWALK INCNorwalkCT$9.8M1
CIVIC LIGHT OPERA ASSOCIATION OF GREATER PITTSBURGHPittsburghPA$9.8M3
Minnesota Children's MuseumSt PaulMN$9.7M6
PALM SPRINGS ART MUSEUMPalm SpringsCA$9.7M7
CHARLOTTE BALLETCharlotteNC$9.7M4
AN CLAIDHEAMH SOLUIS INCNew YorkNY$9.7M7
NEW DANCE THEATRE INCDenverCO$9.7M2
PINELAND FARMS INCNew GloucesterME$9.7M5
GLOBAL FUND FOR CHILDRENWashingtonDC$9.6M8
WESTERN STATES ARTS FEDERATIONDenverCO$9.6M5
MAXWELL C KING CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS INCCocoaFL$9.6M1
MADISON CHILDREN'S MUSEUM INCMadisonWI$9.6M3
All Classical Public Media IncPortlandOR$9.6M4
THE LOUISVILLE ORCHESTRA INCLouisvilleKY$9.6M5
THE NEON MUSEUMLas VegasNV$9.6M5
PLIMOTH PATUXET MUSEUMS INCPlymouthMA$9.6M6