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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 285 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
DANIELANDSOMESUPERFRIENDS INCNew YorkNY$296k2
BLACK IN APPALACHIAWhitesburgTN$296k0
PRESERVING OUR SOUTHERN APPALACHIAN MUSIC INCEasleySC$296k0
LAKELAND BAND BOOSTERSWhite LakeMI$296k0
MINERAL POINT OPERA HOUSE INCMineral PointWI$296k1
FUNOONHastings On HudsonNY$296k1
ARKANSAS CULTURE AND DIALOG CENTERLittle RockAR$296k1
MICHIGAN COMMUNITY MEDIA INCWashingtonMI$296k0
AMERICAN ARAB HERITAGE COUNCILFlintMI$296k0
CENTER FOR INTERNATIONAL PERFORMANCE & EXHIBITIONChicagoIL$296k1
GREATER ONEONTA HISTORICAL SOCIETYOneontaNY$296k1
PIONEER WINTER COLLECTIVE INCMiamiFL$296k2
LEXINGTON CHINESE SCHOOL INCBelmontMA$296k0
WATER STREET GLASSWORKSBenton HarborMI$295k0
The Glen Ellyn Children's ChorusGlen EllynIL$295k1
MICHIGAN LEGACY ART PARKThompsonvilleMI$295k0
MOSQUITO RANGE HERITAGE INITIATIVEAlmaCO$295k0
POLANKI INCORPORATEDMilwaukeeWI$295k0
PARIS COMMUNITY THEATERParisTX$295k1
Laurel Community Center Org IncMarshallNC$295k0
LATROBE ART CENTER INCLatrobePA$295k0
BALLET OF YORK COUNTYRock HillSC$295k1
FIRST CITY PLAYERSKetchikanAK$295k0
BOND STREET THEATRE COALITION LTDNew YorkNY$295k1
PLAYS AND PLAYERSPhiladelphiaPA$295k1
NCRT INC NORTHCOAST REPERTORY THEATREEurekaCA$295k0
ECOVIVARIUMEscondidoCA$295k1
The Vienna Philharmonic SocietyNew YorkNY$295k0
TRUSTEES OF THE TW WOOD GALLERYMontpelierVT$295k1
THE LIGHT FACTORYCharlotteNC$295k1
THE FRIENDS OF POINT BETSIE LIGHTHOUSE INCFrankfortMI$295k0
J C MAXWELL BROADCASTING CORPORATIOJacksonMS$295k2
Salem Stages IncSalemNY$295k0
LARAMIE PUBLIC ART COALITIONLaramieWY$295k0
Cary Ballet CompanyCaryNC$295k3
WOODBINE MAIN STREET INCWoodbineIA$295k0
SUN CITY MUSICAL ARTSEl PasoTX$295k0
ARCHAEOLOGICAL LEGACY INSTITUTEEugeneOR$295k0
CREATIVE CITY KC INCOak GroveMO$295k1
THE H E THROUGH THE ARTS INCLos AngelesCA$294k0
FRIENDS OF SARAH MCLACHLAN SCHOOL OF MUSIC SOCIETY INCSyracuseNY$294k0
ORMAO DANCE COMPANY INCColorado SpringsCO$294k1
THINGNYBrooklynNY$294k8
AREA COMMUNITY THEATRE OF SHARPSVILLESharpsvillePA$294k0
TULSA MUSIC INCUBATOR INCTulsaOK$294k0
FEDERATION OF CYPRIOT AMERICAN ORGANIZATIONS INCAstoriaNY$294k0
FREEDOM ENCOUNTER INCORPORATEDBransonMO$294k0
GREAT FALLS FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS INCGreat FallsVA$294k0
Community Theatre Guild IncValparaisoIN$294k0
PERFORMING ARTS ACADEMYMiddletownOH$294k0