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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 229 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
CHAMBER MUSIC SOCIETY OF ST LOUIS INCSaint LouisMO$418k1
THE SESSIONS ENRICH-EDUCATE-EMPOWER INCTierra VerdeFL$418k3
PAKACHOAG MUSIC SCHOOL OF GREATER WORCESTERWorcesterMA$418k1
THEATER REACHING YOUNG PEOPLE & SCHOOLSColumbiaMO$418k1
BLACK MOUNTAIN SWANNANOA VALLEY ARTS CENTERBlack MountainNC$418k1
DAEDALIAN FOUNDATIONJbsarandolphTX$418k0
DMF YOUTH INCNew YorkNY$418k1
Blue Deer CenterMargaretvilleNY$418k0
CHILDRENS BALLET OF SAN ANTONIOSan AntonioTX$418k1
Borrego Art InstituteBorrego SpringsCA$418k1
PUPPET COGlen EchoMD$417k1
ALLIANCE FRANCAISE DE PASADENAPasadenaCA$417k0
GAS LAMP INCGlen RidgeNJ$417k3
CARROLL SHOW CHOIR BOOSTERS INCFort WayneIN$417k0
VOICECORPS READING SERVICES INCColumbusOH$417k1
SRINIVASA PRASAD INTERNATIONAL FOUNDATION FOR THE PERFORMING ARTSJeannettePA$417k0
HARRISON CENTER FOR THE ARTS PARENTS ASSOCIATION INCLakelandFL$417k0
Bloomington Community Radio Inc dba WFHBBloomingtonIN$417k1
Corn Hill Neighbors Association IncRochesterNY$417k0
THE GATEWOOD MARTIN MANSION FOUNDATIONNorfolkVA$417k0
Ninth Judicial Circuit Historical SocietySan FranciscoCA$417k1
LAPORTE COUNTY HISTORICAL STEAM SOCIETY INCLaPorteIN$417k1
YOUNG MUSICIANS CHORAL ORCHESTRABerkeleyCA$417k1
SUFFOLK COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETYRiverheadNY$417k1
African American Cultural Festival of Raleigh Wake County IncRaleighNC$417k0
Plaza Theatre AssociationMiamisburgOH$417k0
4YOUTH PRODUCTIONS INCWilmingtonDE$417k1
CHARLESTON BALLET INCCharlestonWV$417k0
LAKE COUNTRY PLAYHOUSE INCMineolaTX$417k0
CREATIVE ARTS INCCrystal LakeIL$416k0
Flagship Niagara LeagueEriePA$416k0
Cleveland Coordinating Committee For COD IncRichfieldOH$416k1
AMERICA'S FREEDOM TRIBUTETylerTX$416k0
THE HISTORIC ITALIAN HALL FOUNDATIONLos AngelesCA$416k0
VIRGINIA SPACE FLIGHT ACADEMYWallops IslandVA$416k1
CHAMBER MUSIC HOUSTON INCHoustonTX$416k0
ROXY-CHIMES FOUNDATION INCPomonaCA$416k0
Performing Arts and Science Academy PasaMarionSC$416k4
DES MOINES CHILDRENS MUSEUMWest Des MoinesIA$416k1
SHREVEPORT METROPOLITAN BALLETShreveportLA$416k0
CROOK COUNTY MUSEUM DISTRICTSundanceWY$416k0
OKLAHOMA MUSEUMS ASSOCIATIONOklahoma CityOK$416k0
NEW YORK SOCIETY OF EYE PHYSICIANS AND SURGEONS INCDelmarNY$416k1
THE CARVING STUDIO & SCULPTURE CTRWest RutlandVT$416k1
CLASSIC CAR MUSEUM OF ST AUGUSTINESaint AugustineFL$415k0
BLOOMSBURG PUBLIC LIBRARYBloomsburgPA$415k0
Black Pearl Chamber Orchestra IncPhiladelphiaPA$415k1
ARC OF THE CENTRAL MOUNTAINSGlenwood SpringsCO$415k1
Miami Childrens Chorus IncMiamiFL$415k3
ROSENBERG RAILROAD MUSEUM INCRosenbergTX$415k0