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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 217 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
SPANISH DANZART SOCIETYSanta FeNM$456k0
SHAKESPEARE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICAUniversityMS$456k1
Mondo Bizarro ProductionsNew OrleansLA$456k2
MISSOURI STATE SOCIETY DAUGHTERS OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTIONBoonvilleMO$456k0
DAVIS MUSICAL THEATRE COMPANYDavisCA$456k0
THE ELM SHAKESPEARE COMPANYNew HavenCT$455k1
INLET DANCE THEATREClevelandOH$455k1
CSEHY SUMMER SCHOOL OF MUSICFountainvillePA$455k3
NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCH ASSN OF WASHINGTON DCWashingtonDC$455k2
Appleton Historical Society IncAppletonWI$455k0
ARTS & SCIENCE CENTER FOR SOUTHEAST ARKANSAS ENDOWMENT FUND INCPine BluffAR$455k0
SCIENTIFIC & CULTURAL COLLABORATIVEDenverCO$455k1
PRESSER ARTS CENTERMexicoMO$455k1
Hillfest EventsRindgeNH$455k0
COUNCIL FOR REGIONAL HEALTH EDUCATIONTexarkanaAR$455k0
PINOCCHIO INCLos AngelesCA$455k0
TREL FOUNDATIONCarltonOR$455k0
i AM Music IncDurangoCO$455k2
HARMONY INCORPORATEDMechanicsvilleVA$455k0
CHOPIN FOUNDATION OF THE UNITED STATES INCMiamiFL$455k1
MINORITIES IN CYBERSECURITY INCMansfieldTX$455k1
THE EDGE MOTOR MUSEUM INCMemphisTN$455k1
POCKET OPERA INCSan FranciscoCA$455k1
AMERICA'S HOMETOWN THANKSGIVING INC C/O OLLY DEMACEDOPlymouthMA$455k0
HALLWALLS INCBuffaloNY$455k1
Carmel Ideas FoundationPebble BeachCA$455k0
SENIOR SERVICES FOUNDATION INCWinstonsalemNC$455k1
YCII INCNew YorkNY$455k0
CONVIVIO INCDel MarCA$454k0
RIVER ROAD AFRICAN AMERICAN MUSEUM AND GALLERYDonaldsonvilleLA$454k1
DALLAS FILM SOCIETY INCDallasTX$454k1
REBECCA PENNEYS FRIENDS OF PIANO INCSt Pete BeachFL$454k0
THE HOLLYWOOD MUSEUMLos AngelesCA$454k0
WILEMON FOUNDATION INCTupeloMS$454k0
Make Music New York IncAstoriaNY$454k1
Let It Ripple IncMill ValleyCA$454k3
HALLOCKVILLE INCRiverheadNY$454k1
PERRY COUNTY COUNCIL OF THE ARTSNewportPA$454k1
DADA NMTC 1 INCLos AngelesCA$454k0
THE PRIMAVERA FUNDPhiladelphiaPA$454k1
NOTOTOMNE CULTURAL PRESERVATIONLindenCA$454k2
UNCOMMON VOICES COLLECTIVEPasadenaCA$454k1
Granger Historical SocietyMedinaOH$453k0
DUNHAM TAVERN MUSEUM & GARDENSClevelandOH$453k1
BRAZOS 2020 VISION INCBryanTX$453k0
PRIMA ARTS INCLancasterPA$453k0
POLISH LANGUAGE SCHOOL INCNew BritainCT$453k0
STUDIOS ON THE PARK INCPaso RoblesCA$453k0
OKEEFE EDUCATIONAL MEDIAGulfportMS$453k1
JAMES GANGIowa CityIA$453k1