Skip to main content
Updated through 2024NTEE A · Arts, Culture & Humanities

Arts, Culture & Humanities nonprofitexecutive pay

Median top-executive pay across 16,157 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
$59,800
The typical arts, culture & humanities nonprofit's highest-paid executive earns $59,800 in total reported compensation.
25th pct
$24k
75th pct
$107k
90th pct
$194k
16,157 organizations · 2019 – 2024
Percentile distribution

Where the middle 50% lands.

Half earn between $24k and $107k. That band is the interquartile range. The 90th percentile sits at $194k, roughly 3.2 times the median. That upper tail is where the largest organizations cluster.

PercentileTotal compMeans
90th$193,685Top 10% of earners
75th$107,34225% earn more than this
50th · median$59,800The typical executive
25th$23,76025% earn less than this
10th$7,50010% 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$15k$38,108$67k11,178
$1M – $10M$87k$125,336$180k4,194
$10M – $100M$242k$341,128$522k736
$100M – $500M$562k$771,220$1.3M45
Revenue bands with fewer than 5 organizations are not shown.
By role

Benchmark a specific Arts, Culture & Humanities role

Drill into median pay for individual leadership roles within arts, culture & humanities nonprofits.

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 40,937 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

40,937 organizations · Page 23 of 819

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
FRIENDS OF WWOZ INCNew OrleansLA$7.4M4
DALLAS THEATER CENTERDallasTX$7.4M1
UNLIMITED OPPORTUNITIES INCBoonvilleMO$7.4M1
ADVENTURE SCIENCE CENTER - NASHVILLE F/K/A CUMBERLAND MUSEUMSNashvilleTN$7.4M4
BEAVERTON ARTS FOUNDATION INCBeavertonOR$7.4M1
CROCKER ART MUSEUM FOUNDATIONSacramentoCA$7.4M2
AUTRY MUSEUM OF THE AMERICAN WESTLos AngelesCA$7.4M7
PALM SPRINGS ART MUSEUMPalm SpringsCA$7.4M3
Writers Theatre IncGlencoeIL$7.4M2
NATIONAL BUSINESS OFFICERS ASSOCIATION INCWashingtonDC$7.4M6
CHISHOLM TRAIL HERITAGE MUSEUM INCCueroTX$7.4M1
EDUCATIONAL THEATRE ASSOCIATIONCincinattiOH$7.4M4
Shearim CorpMiamiFL$7.3M0
THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA PRESS INCChapel HillNC$7.3M8
THE EDWARD ORTON JR CERAMIC FOUNDATIONWestervilleOH$7.3M7
COMMUNITY MUSIC CENTER OF BOSTON INCBostonMA$7.3M1
Arts Midwest IncorporatedMinneapolisMN$7.3M3
VILAR PERFORMING ARTS CENTER INCAvonCO$7.3M3
HENRY FORD ESTATEDearbornMI$7.3M1
THE BROOKLYN QUEENS CONSERVATORY OF MUSICBrooklynNY$7.3M2
CREATION AND PRESERVATION PARTNERS INCSheboyganWI$7.3M1
FLINT INSTITUTE OF ARTSFlintMI$7.3M2
CENTRAL CITY OPERA HOUSE ASSOCIATIONWheat RidgeCO$7.3M3
THE LARRY J BELL LIBRARY FOUNDATIONKalamazooMI$7.3M0
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR MUSIC EDUCATIONHerndonVA$7.3M4
SEWELL C BIGGS TRUST THE BIGGS MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ARTDoverDE$7.3M1
ATLANTA HALL MANAGEMENT INCAtlantaGA$7.3M6
HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL CENTER INCFarmington HillsMI$7.3M5
DE ETTE HOLDEN CUMMER MUSEUM FOUNDATIONJacksonvilleFL$7.2M6
San Diego Opera AssociationSan DiegoCA$7.2M4
VIRGINIA FOUNDATION FOR PUBLIC MEDIARichmondVA$7.2M3
RHODE ISLAND PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA & MUSIC SCHOOLEast ProvidenceRI$7.2M3
THIS IS THE PLACE FOUNDATION INCSalt Lake CityUT$7.2M0
THE WALDEN WOODS PROJECTLincolnMA$7.2M1
Spokane Symphony SocietySpokaneWA$7.2M4
ARCHAEOLOGICAL INSTITUTE OF AMERICABostonMA$7.2M6
Cultural Council of Palm Beach County IncLake Worth BeachFL$7.2M3
KENTUCKY DANCE COUNCIL INC DBA LOUISVILLE BALLETLouisvilleKY$7.2M2
NEIGHBORHOOD TRUST FINANCIAL PARTNERS INCNew YorkNY$7.2M7
LADY LEX MUSEUM ON THE BAY ASSOCCorpus ChristiTX$7.2M2
THE BALTIMORE CHILDREN'S MUSEUM INCBaltimoreMD$7.2M3
BERGEN PERFORMING ARTS CENTER INCEnglewoodNJ$7.2M4
AKRON ART MUSEUMAkronOH$7.2M4
Friends of Idaho Public Television IncBoiseID$7.1M1
NORTH COAST REPERTORY THEATRESolana BeachCA$7.1M0
MOCO KIDSCO INC DBA KID MUSEUM INCBethesdaMD$7.1M5
AIR ZOO LEGACY FOUNDATIONPortageMI$7.1M1
BISHOP MUSEUM OF SCIENCE AND NATURE INCBradentonFL$7.1M1
MOUNT ZION BAPTIST CHURCH PRESERVATION SOCIETYAthensOH$7.1M0
HOUSE OF BLUES MUSIC FORWARD FOUNDATION Doing business as MUSIC FORWARDBeverly HillsCA$7.1M1