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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 270 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
FOOTHILLS FORUMWashingtonVA$322k1
THE POP-UP PROJECTChattanoogaTN$322k1
PAINTED SKY CENTER FOR THE ARTSJohn DayOR$322k0
Independence Day Celebration IncMorgan HillCA$321k0
OLD COURTHOUSE THEATRE INCConcordNC$321k0
NORTHERN ROCKIES HERITAGE CENTER INCMissoulaMT$321k2
SPOTLIGHT YOUTH THEATREGlendaleAZ$321k7
WCR CENTER FOR THE ARTS INCReadingPA$321k0
PANDION MUSIC FOUNDATION INC C/O REBECCA T VESTWoodland HillsCA$321k1
MARKET SQUARE CONCERTSHarrisburgPA$321k2
PRESERVATION PENNSYLVANIAHarrisburgPA$321k1
A PLUS EDUCATION AND PERFORMING ARTS INCPrincetonNJ$321k0
CLOWNS WITHOUT BORDERS INCNew YorkNY$321k2
CENTRAL COMMUNITY THEATRE INCGreenwell SpringsLA$321k0
YOUNG PEOPLES THEATERAnn ArborMI$321k0
ROCHESTER CONSTRUCTION TRAINING CENTER INCRochesterNY$321k2
MUSEUM OF THE PLAINSPerrytonTX$321k0
Albany County Historical AssociationAlbanyNY$321k2
FRIENDS OF THE RB PROJECT INCStocktonMO$321k0
OPEN STUDIOS INCBoulderCO$321k1
FRIENDS OF THE SAINT MARYS THEATER AND GRAND OPERA HOUSE INCStmarysOH$321k0
HIAWATHA MUSIC NON-PROFIT CORPORATIONMarquetteMI$321k0
COLLINS THEATRE FOUNDATION INCParagouldAR$321k0
The Cherry Arts IncIthacaNY$321k1
CEDARBURG LANDMARK PRESERVATION SOCIETY INCCedarburgWI$321k0
ST MARTINS CHAMBER CHOIRDenverCO$321k0
NIGHTBOAT BOOKS INCBrooklynNY$321k1
THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF EDUCATIONWashingtonDC$321k1
ANCHORAGE COMMUNITY THEATER INCAnchorageAK$321k1
TEXAS SHAKESPEARE FESTIVAL FOUNDATIONKilgoreTX$321k0
SYRACUSE OPERA COMPANY INCSyracuseNY$321k0
OVANOVA GIVES INCCedar GroveNC$321k0
THE PARAMOUNT THEATER FOUNDATION IN F/K/A THE PARAMOUNT THEATER INCCharlottesvilleVA$320k2
KEKAHU FOUNDATION INC DBA KKCRHanaleiHI$320k1
TRUARTSPEAKSSt PaulMN$320k1
Keplers Literary FoundationMenlo ParkCA$320k0
SPEAK ABOUT ITPortlandME$320k1
BELL TOWER GREEN INCSalisburyNC$320k0
BARRINGTON ARTS ALIVEBarringtonRI$320k0
DANCE ACADEMY VA PRODUCTIONS INCMcLeanVA$320k0
PUERTO RICAN FESTIVAL INCRochesterNY$320k0
AMERICAN PATRONS OF THE PINAKOTHEK TRUSTWashingtonDC$320k0
AQUINNAH CULTURAL CENTER INCAquinnahMA$320k0
CINESTORY INCLos AngelesCA$320k4
BOSSE TOY TRAIN MUSEUM INCSanta BarbaraCA$320k0
Lotus Education and Arts Foundation IncBloomingtonIN$320k1
MOBILE OPERA INCMobileAL$320k0
MS MUSEUM OF NATURAL SCIENCE FOUNDATIONJacksonMS$320k1
OHIO GLASS MUSEUMLancasterOH$320k0
ELLIS COUNTY MUSEUM INCWaxahachieTX$320k0