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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 26 of 819

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
ST GEORGE THEATRE RESTORATION INCStaten IslandNY$6.5M2
LOUISIANA ENDOWMENT FOR THE HUMANITIESNew OrleansLA$6.5M4
CHANNEL 5 PUBLIC BROADCASTING INCRenoNV$6.5M1
YOUTH AMERICA GRAND PRIX INCNew YorkNY$6.5M3
GALVESTON HISTORICAL FOUNDATIONGalvestonTX$6.5M3
SEAPORT MUSEUM NEW YORKNew YorkNY$6.5M3
US NAVY MEMORIAL FOUNDATIONWashingtonDC$6.5M8
COLUMBIA MUSEUM OF ARTColumbiaSC$6.5M3
East Bay Center for the Performing ArtsRichmondCA$6.5M5
PERFORMING ARTS HOUSTONHoustonTX$6.5M5
HAWAII THEATRE CENTERHonoluluHI$6.5M1
THE O'KEEFFE MUSEUM FOUNDATIONSanta FeNM$6.5M0
CAPE FEAR REGIONAL THEATRE AT FAYETTEVILLE INCFayettevilleNC$6.5M0
SAN DIEGO SYMPHONY FOUNDATIONSan DiegoCA$6.4M1
THE JOHN HUNTINGTON ART AND POLYTECHNIC TRUSTClevelandOH$6.4M0
Creative ActionAustinTX$6.4M2
DES MOINES METRO OPERA INCIndianolaIA$6.4M1
CURIODYSSEYSan MateoCA$6.4M6
VIRGINIA LIVING MUSEUM INCNewport NewsVA$6.4M2
Houston Local Information Initiative IncHoustonTX$6.4M7
NEW HAMPSHIRE PUBLIC BROADCASTINGDurhamNH$6.4M1
Tucson Symphony SocietyTucsonAZ$6.4M7
MUSCARELLE MUSEUM OF ART FOUNDATIONWilliamsburgVA$6.4M1
CUYAHOGA VALLEY PRESERVATION AND SCENIC RAILWAY ASSOCIATIONPeninsulaOH$6.4M3
United States Olympic and Paralympic MuseumColorado SpringsCO$6.4M4
AMERICAN COLLEGE OF OCCUPATIONAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL MEDICINEElk Grove VillageIL$6.4M4
SOUND OF HOPE RADIO NETWORK INCSan FranciscoCA$6.4M2
TOWN HALL FOUNDATION INCNew YorkNY$6.4M2
JACOB BURNS FILM CENTER INCPleasantvilleNY$6.4M6
NTC FOUNDATIONSan DiegoCA$6.4M1
CULTURAL AND HERITAGE COMMISSIONRock HillSC$6.4M1
BUFFALO SOCIETY OF NATURAL SCIENCESBuffaloNY$6.4M5
RED MOUNTAIN THEATRE COMPANY INCBirminghamAL$6.3M3
LV PUBLIC TELECOMMUNICATIONS CORP WLVT-TV CHANNEL 39BethlehemPA$6.3M4
ALAMO PUBLIC TELECOMMUNICATIONS COUNCIL DOING BUSINESS AS KLRNSan AntonioTX$6.3M6
PORTLAND OPERA ASSOCIATION INCPortlandOR$6.3M2
DELAWARE ART MUSEUM INCWilmingtonDE$6.3M2
LA JOLLA MUSIC SOCIETYLa JollaCA$6.3M6
THEATRE SQUARED INCFayettevilleAR$6.3M3
DISCOVERY SCIENCE CENTER OF LOS ANGELESSylmarCA$6.3M8
From The Heart ProductionsOxnardCA$6.3M1
NASHVILLE BALLETNashvilleTN$6.3M2
NEW HAVEN CENTER FOR PERFORMING ARTS INCWaterburyCT$6.3M0
WESTERN RESERVE HISTORICAL SOCIETYClevelandOH$6.3M4
CHILDRENS MUSEUM OF ROCK COUNTY INCJanesvilleWI$6.3M0
KENTUCKY PUBLIC RADIO INCLouisvilleKY$6.3M7
STAN HYWET HALL & GARDENS INCAkronOH$6.3M4
VIRGINIA SYMPHONY ORCHESTRANorfolkVA$6.3M3
Black Feminist Future IncAtlantaGA$6.3M1
SAN DIEGO AIR & SPACE MUSEUM INCSan DiegoCA$6.3M4