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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 271 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
CITY LIGHTS & COMPANYBridgeportCT$320k0
HERITAGE TOURISM ALLIANCE OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY INCGaithersburgMD$320k1
LORELEI ENSEMBLE INCCambridgeMA$320k0
STOLEN SHAKESPEARE GUILDFort WorthTX$320k1
LESUEUR COUNTY PIONEER POWER ASSN ATTN JENNIFER TRIMBOLeSueurMN$320k0
EBELL FRIENDSLos AngelesCA$320k0
ONE AMERICA WORKS INCAustinTX$320k0
ACTION YOUTH MEDIA INCSilver SpringMD$320k1
BRAVO VANCOUVER CONCERT SERIESVancouverWA$320k0
SUFFOLK ART LEAGUESuffolkVA$319k0
Birmingham Historical SocietyBirminghamAL$319k0
DUCRET SCHOOL OF THE ARTSPlainfieldNJ$319k0
FAULKNER MORGAN ARCHIVELexingtonKY$319k1
THE ROAD COMPANY THEATER GROUP INCWilliamstownNJ$319k0
LOUDOUN LAURELSLeesburgVA$319k1
AMERICAN HOT ROD FOUNDATION INC C/O STEPHEN E MEMISHIANGreenwichCT$319k0
BLUE EARTH COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETYMankatoMN$319k0
CHILDREN'S CHORUS OF MARYLAND INCTowsonMD$319k2
IN BLACK INKSaint PaulMN$319k2
The Rose Conservatory IncBrocktonMA$319k2
BERKSHIRE SCENIC RAILWAY MUSEUM INCLenoxMA$319k0
Riverside Childrens TheatreRiversideCA$319k0
MUSIC HOUSE MUSEUMAcmeMI$319k1
The JOLT News OrganizationOlympiaWA$319k1
BARTLETT ARBORETUM SOCIETYBelle PlaineKS$319k0
Order of the Southern CrossSouthlakeTX$319k0
ST CROIX FALLS FESTIVAL THEATRESt Croix FallsWI$319k0
THE ROCKAWAY THEATRE COMPANY INCRockaway ParkNY$319k0
LOCAL REPORTING LAB INITIATIVE INCBoulderCO$319k0
FRIENDS OF MARBLE HOUSE PROJECTINCDorsetVT$319k0
Walla Walla Summer Theater StudiosWalla WallaWA$319k1
MUSIC IN THE SOMERSET HILLS INCBernardsvilleNJ$319k1
PHOTOGRAPHY WITHOUT BORDERS INCPhiladelphiaPA$319k2
Belrose Performing Arts CenterSan RafaelCA$319k0
CHANNEL ISLANDS MARITIME MUSEUM INCOxnardCA$319k3
DANCE NEW ENGLAND INCMedfordMA$319k0
GULFSHORE BALLET INCFort MyersFL$319k0
HONOR FLIGHT NEW ENGLAND INCHooksettNH$319k1
LATINO ARTS INCMilwaukeeWI$318k0
MILLERSBURG FERRY BOAT ASSOCIATIONMillersburgPA$318k0
UNITED STATES OPEN MUSIC COMPETITIONOaklandCA$318k2
HERITAGE MUSEUM FOUNDATION AT GRISSOM AIR RESERVE BASEPeruIN$318k1
FRANCO AMERICAN CENTREManchesterNH$318k0
PORT TOBACCO PLAYERS INCLa PlataMD$318k1
FRIENDS OF THE ARMY WOMEN'S MUSEUM ASSOCIATIONPrince GeorgeVA$318k0
SANDGLASS CENTER FOR PUPPETRY & THEATER RESEARCH LTDPutneyVT$318k3
DARKE COUNTY CENTER FOR THE ARTS INCGreenvilleOH$318k1
PRISM GAY MEN AND ALLIES CHORUS CORPORATIONRoyal OakMI$318k0
NATURIST SOCIETY FOUNDATION INCOshkoshWI$318k1
WAYNESBORO SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA INCWaynesboroVA$318k5