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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 276 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
SHAKESPEARE ON THE SOUND INCRowaytonCT$312k0
FUNDACION JALISCO USA INCGarden GroveCA$312k0
DALLASFORT WORTH MAHARASHTRA MANDALPlanoTX$312k0
IDAHO MUSIC EDUCATORS ASSOCIATION INCAberdeenID$312k5
THE PROVIDENTIAL HERITAGE ACADEMYCherry ValleyCA$312k0
Friends of the Erben Organ IncNew YorkNY$312k0
ARTES DE LA ROSA INCFort WorthTX$312k1
ViVO Youth OrchestrasSonomaCA$312k2
STILWELL HERITAGE & EDUCATIONALPittsburgKS$312k0
TWELVE GATES ARTSPhiladelphiaPA$311k1
CARDBOARD PLAYHOUSE THEATRE COMPANYAlbuquerqueNM$311k5
CAPITAL AREA NEW MAINERS PROJECT CHRIS MYERS ASCHAugustaME$311k1
GREENWOOD COMMUNITY CENTERGreenwoodMS$311k0
CAPITAL REGION COMMUNITY MEDIA INCMontpelierVT$311k1
GASTON SCHOOL OF THE ARTSGastoniaNC$311k2
SALIENT OF HARVARD COLLEGECambridgeMA$311k0
LAW FIRM ANTIRACISM ALLIANCE INCChicagoIL$311k0
FAIRFIELD COUNTY HERITAGE ASSOCIATIONLancasterOH$311k1
RENO DANCE COMPANYRenoNV$311k4
CREATIVITY UNLIMITED ARTS COUNCILNorth PlatteNE$311k1
Laredo Theater Guild International IncLaredoTX$311k0
RHYTHM X PERFORMANCE ENSEMBLECincinnatiOH$311k0
AMERICAN FRIENDS OF THE OXFORD PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA INCNew YorkNY$311k0
CHILDRENS ARTS GUILDNew YorkNY$311k1
HONOR FLIGHT OF SOUTHERN COLORADOColorado SpgsCO$311k0
TERASAKI NIBEI FOUNDATION FKA NIBEI FOUNDATIONArcadiaCA$311k0
KUSKOKWIM PUBLIC BROADCASTING CORPMcGrathAK$311k0
OREGON HOPE CHINESE SCHOOLPortlandOR$311k1
SOUTHEASTERN MINNESOTA YOUTH ORCHESTRA INCRochesterMN$311k1
MILTON ARTISTS GUILD INCMiltonVT$311k1
EVANSVILLE AFRICAN AMERICAN MUSEUMEvansvilleIN$311k0
Fine Linen TheatreSaint JamesMO$311k0
THE RICE MUSEUMGeorgetownSC$311k2
Overflow Fine Arts IncValricoFL$311k5
OCTAGON CENTER FOR THE ARTSAmesIA$311k1
CHELAN COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETYCashmereWA$311k0
GREATER ASHMONT MAIN STREET INCDorchester CenterMA$310k1
THEATRE LAB INCNew YorkNY$310k1
SHREVEPORT MULTICULTURAL CENTER INShreveportLA$310k0
Northeast Access CommitteeNewportVT$310k1
THE COMMUNITY MUSIC SCHOOL OF THE PIEDMONT INCUppervilleVA$310k1
ARTSPACE INCSanta BarbaraCA$310k1
BUFFALO HERITAGE CAROUSEL INCBuffaloNY$310k1
FLORIDA-GEORGIA RAILWAY HERITAGE MUSEUM INCMount DoraFL$310k0
PLEASANTVIEW HISTORICAL ASSNGaithersburgMD$310k0
Just Like You IncPrairie VillageKS$310k0
307 DANCE ACADEMYCasperWY$310k0
INDIAN FILM FESTIVAL OF LOS ANGELESLos AngelesCA$310k1
Lambda Archives of San DiegoSan DiegoCA$310k1
TALKINGTON ENDOWMENTLubbockTX$310k0