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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 261 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
ACADEMY OF NEUROLOGIC MUSIC THERAPYFort CollinsCO$339k2
DAYTON LIEDERKRANZ-TURNERS INCDaytonOH$339k0
MARYLAND ART PLACE INCBaltimoreMD$339k1
MVPA Historical Archives IncWinstonGA$339k0
ELGIN MASTER CHORALE INCElginIL$339k0
CLASSICAL KIDS MUSIC EDUCATION NFPChicagoIL$339k1
PULSE PERCUSSION INCLong BeachCA$339k0
ASSOCIATION OF PROFESSIONAL GENEALOGISTSPoulsboWA$339k2
West End Arts DistrictAlamedaCA$339k1
JEAN SHELTON FOUNDATIONLaguna BeachCA$339k2
ROSE VALLEY CENTENNIAL FOUNDATIONRose ValleyPA$339k0
ST JOHNS COUNTY CENTER FOR THESt AugustineFL$339k2
HIGGINSVILLE COUNTRY CLUB INCHigginsvilleMO$339k0
PENNSYLVANIA STATE SOCIETY - DAUGHTERS OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTIONLandisvillePA$339k0
LEATHERSTOCKING RAILWAY HISTORICAL SOCIETY INCOneontaNY$339k0
BRADDOCK'S BATTLEFIELD HISTORY CENTERLigonierPA$338k0
GLASS HALF FULL THEATREAustinTX$338k1
Drummond Island Tourism AssociationDrummond IslandMI$338k0
NEBRASKA MUSIC EDUCATION ASSOCIATIONBoystownNE$338k1
Monticello Opera House IncMonticelloFL$338k1
PLYMOUTH ART FOUNDATION INCPlymouthWI$338k1
NEW PLAZA CINEMA INCNew YorkNY$338k1
FRIENDS OF THE MANSION INCOklahoma CityOK$338k0
BUFFALO COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETYKearneyNE$338k0
KIK KA'EAIKAHELELANI INCHolualoaHI$338k2
Bay Area Educational Theater CompanySan CarlosCA$338k0
ACADEMIE MUSIQUETempleTX$338k1
ARTS IN SCHOOLS COLLABORATIVEPhiladelphiaPA$338k1
Richard Petty Museum IncRandlemanNC$338k1
CLASSIC THEATRE OF SAN ANTONIOSan AntonioTX$338k0
FRIENDS OF THE UFFIZI GALLERYPalm BeachFL$338k0
INCLUSIVE ARTS VERMONT INCEssex JunctionVT$338k1
Greater Newburyport Community Media Hub IncNewburyportMA$338k1
MILE HIGH YOUTH THEATRE INCDenverCO$338k2
Little Village FoundationSolvangCA$338k2
ISETT ACRES MUSEUM FOUNDATIONHuntingdonPA$338k1
TULSA YOUTH SYMPHONYTulsaOK$338k1
Milton Art Center IncMiltonMA$338k2
THE ASSOCIATION FOR CULTURAL EQUITY INCNew YorkNY$338k2
FORT LIGONIER DAYS INCLigonierPA$338k0
ACTING OUT THEATER COMPANY INCLawrenceMA$337k1
NAMI NORTHWESTFremontOH$337k0
Adopt the Arts FoundationAgoura HillsCA$337k1
MACKINAC ARTS COUNCILMacKinac IslandMI$337k0
PROP FOUNDATION INCMissoulaMT$337k0
POINT SAN LUIS LIGHTHOUSE KEEPERSAvila BeachCA$337k0
BERKS MILITARY HISTORY MUSEUMMohntonPA$337k0
ORIGAMI USA INCNew YorkNY$337k2
HISTORIC WENDOVER AIRFIELD INCSandyUT$337k0
SUSSEX COUNTY ARTS & HERITAGE COUNCNewtonNJ$337k0