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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 246 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
Aya Art CoSan DiegoCA$373k0
SISTER BAY HISTORICAL SOCIETY INCSister BayWI$373k0
PAN AM 103-LOCKERBIE LEGACY FOUNDATION INCMiamiFL$373k0
GREENWICH CHORAL SOCIETY INCGreenwichCT$373k0
TOVREA CARRARO SOCIETYPhoenixAZ$373k0
GRACE DEE MAY INCLos AngelesCA$373k0
CATALYST COLLECTIVEAustinTX$373k0
LA MUSICA LIRICA INCMilwaukeeWI$372k0
Ensemble Studio Theatre the LA ProjectLos AngelesCA$372k1
HIGHER WORKS COLLABORATIVESt CloudMN$372k2
ALLIANCE FRANCAISE OF WESTCHESTER INCNew YorkNY$372k1
THE PEOPLE'S PORTFOLIO INC C/O CLIQUE STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT INCWest OrangeNJ$372k0
MARAFIKI CENTER INCLexingtonKY$372k0
SONES DE MEXICO ENSEMBLEChicagoIL$372k1
RIDGWAY CHAUTAUQUA DBA THE NEW SHERBINO THEATERRidgwayCO$372k1
FONTANA CHAMBER ARTSKalamazooMI$372k1
CONEJO CHINESE CULTURAL ASSOCIATIONThousand OaksCA$372k0
The Arts Council of Pendleton IncPendletonOR$372k1
NEW CANON CHAMBER COLLECTIVE INCPompano BeachFL$372k0
INSTITUTE FOR THE NEXT JEWISH FUTURE INJFChicagoIL$372k2
Spaceflight MissionAustinTX$372k1
TEATRO EXPERIMENTAL YERBABRUJA INCCentral IslipNY$372k1
BISMARCK-MANDAN ORCHESTRAL ASSOCIATIONBismarckND$371k5
Open Tone MusicAkronOH$371k2
ARTOMATIC INCWashingtonDC$371k0
ARTS COUNCIL OF LAKE OSWEGOLake OswegoOR$371k1
YARNWIRE INCRidgewoodNY$371k1
SHINE ON PERFORMING ARTSGeorgetownTX$371k1
Modern Motion A NJ Non-Profit CorporationSomersetNJ$371k1
INTERNATIONAL COUNCIL OF FINE ARTS DEANS INCWest Palm BeachFL$371k0
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF WOMEN ARTISTS INCNew YorkNY$371k1
MISSOULA CULTURAL COUNCIL dba ARTS MISSOULAMissoulaMT$371k1
ATLANTA TAMIL MANDRAM INCCummingGA$371k0
Open Channels New York Inc dba Dixon PlaceNew YorkNY$371k1
Christian Youth Theatre SpokaneSpokaneWA$371k0
PRESERVING CHRISTIAN PUBLICATIONSBoonvilleNY$371k1
Athletes in Rochester IncorporatedWebsterNY$370k3
FOURTH ARTS BLOCK INCNew YorkNY$370k1
THE VERGILIAN SOCIETY INCPiedmontCA$370k5
INDIANA GLASS ARTS ALLIANCE INCIndianapolisIN$370k5
SHBA TRAINING TRUST WHITESpokane ValleyWA$370k0
Sacramento Comedy SpotSacramentoCA$370k1
Natural History InstitutePrescottAZ$370k1
MUSIQAHoustonTX$370k0
WE ALWAYS SWING INCColumbiaMO$370k1
Cangelosi Dance Project IncBaton RougeLA$370k0
Northern Starz Theatre CompanyAnokaMN$370k0
CO LAB THEATER GROUP INCNew YorkNY$370k2
SMITHTOWN HISTORICAL MUSEUMSSmithtownNY$370k1
UNCA AWARDS COMMITTEE INCNew YorkNY$370k0