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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 226 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
Rochester Folk Art Guild IncMiddlesexNY$427k2
THE MUSEUM OF VISUAL MATERIALS DBA MOSAIC ARTS & EVENTSSioux FallsSD$427k1
Beyond Booking IncBrooklynNY$427k2
Katia and Company IncNovatoCA$427k3
NORTHWEST TIBETAN CULTURAL ASSOCIATIONPortlandOR$427k0
Santa Monica Group TheatreSanta MonicaCA$427k0
Capital Fringe IncWashingtonDC$427k1
THE SOCIETY FOR FINANCIAL AWARENESSSan DiegoCA$427k1
METHUEN MEMORIAL MUSIC HALL INCMethuenMA$427k1
BRIDGEVIEW SCHOOL OF FINE ARTS INCOrangeVA$427k1
Bridge Leadership AcademyKansas CityMO$427k1
20 Summers IncProvincetownMA$427k0
DOCOMOMO USNew YorkNY$426k0
South Orange County Community TheatreSan Juan CapistranoCA$426k3
MINNESOTA MASONIC HISTORICAL SOCIETY AND MUSEUMBloomingtonMN$426k3
THE LINCOLN THEATRE INCMarionVA$426k0
CHAMBER MUSIC UNBOUNDMammoth LakesCA$426k2
Champions for WildlifeLynnNC$426k0
Mount Pleasant Discovery MuseumMt PleasantMI$426k0
Genesis Broadcasting Network CorpMiramarFL$426k0
DESIGN MANAGEMENT INSTITUTE INCCambridgeMA$426k1
WASHINGTON COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY INCWashingtonPA$426k1
EMERGING ARTISTS THEATRE CO INCNew YorkNY$426k1
AMERICAN ITALIAN RENAISSANCE FOUNDATIONNew OrleansLA$426k0
ARTICHOKE COMMUNITY MUSICPortlandOR$426k0
GRASS ROOTS CULTURAL AND PERFORMING ARTS CENTER INCBlackstoneMA$426k3
People of Progression IncMenashaWI$426k0
WESTWOOD MEDIA CENTER INCWestwoodMA$425k0
WHITESIDE MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORYSeymourTX$425k1
SVG SPORTS BROADCASTING FUNDNew YorkNY$425k1
AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF POLISH CULTURE INCMiamiFL$425k0
RENO JAZZ ORCHESTRARenoNV$425k1
WITNESS TO WAR FOUNDATION INCAlpharettaGA$425k0
SAINT PAUL BALLETSaint PaulMN$425k0
MCLEAN COUNTY ARTS CENTERBloomingtonIL$425k1
CONUNDRUM THEATRE COMPANY INCBurbankCA$425k1
BULK SPACEDetroitMI$425k2
Clarinda Carnegie MuseumLincolnNE$425k2
YELLOWSTONE COUNTY MUSEUM FOUNDATIONBillingsMT$425k0
CMW SUPPORT CORPORATIONProvidenceRI$425k2
BenitoLink IncHollisterCA$425k1
NATIONAL FOOD AND BEVERAGE FOUNDATIONNew OrleansLA$425k1
THE BIRD DOG FOUNDATION INCGrand JunctionTN$424k0
Aimusic USCupertinoCA$424k3
NEDERLAND HERITAGE FESTIVAL FOUNDATNederlandTX$424k0
ARLINGTON COMMUNITY THEATRE INCArlingtonMA$424k0
More Art IncNew YorkNY$424k1
THE OHIO GENEALOGICAL SOCIETYBellvilleOH$424k1
Conococheague Institute For the Study of Cultural HeritageMercersburgPA$424k0
CHARLESTON OPERA THEATER INCCharlestonSC$424k3