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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 286 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
BERKNER AREA BAND CLUBRichardsonTX$294k0
PASATIEMPO HISTORICAL FOUNDATIONSanta CruzCA$294k0
FRIENDS OF MILLS MANSIONStaatsburgNY$294k0
SUPERIOR PUBLIC MUSEUMSSuperiorWI$294k1
BILLINGS COMMUNITY CABLE CORPBillingsMT$294k1
THE RIVER HOUSE INCCapon BridgeWV$294k1
REGION 30 UIL MUSICFort WorthTX$294k1
WESTERLIES MUSIC INCBrooklynNY$294k0
National Society of the Daughters of the American RevolutionNormanOK$294k1
Baltimore Improv GroupBaltimoreMD$294k1
THE NICK LOEB FOUNDATION INCWilmingtonDE$294k0
DECATUR HIGH SCHOOL PERFORMING ARTS ASSOCIATIONDecaturGA$294k0
COMMUNITY CENTER FOR THE ARTSUrbanaIL$294k3
CARMEL MUSIC SOCIETYCarmelCA$294k0
Filarmonica Portuguesa De TulareTulareCA$294k0
LITTLE EAGLE ARTS FOUNDATIONWisconsin DellsWI$294k1
THE MUSEUM - GREENWOOD SOUTH CAROLINAGreenwoodSC$294k1
Fresno Athletic Hall of FameFresnoCA$294k0
JOURNEYS IN EDUCATION INCPeterboroughNH$294k1
NEWAYGO COUNTY COUNCIL FOR THE ARTS INCFremontMI$294k2
THE ANNAPOLIS GROUP OF LIBERAL ARTS COLLEGES INCAnnapolisMD$294k0
FRIENDS OF THE OLGA STORE BUILDINGOlgaWA$293k0
TREDYFFRIN TWP LIBRARY FOUNDATIONWaynePA$293k0
US ARMY WOMEN'S FOUNDATION INCFort GreggadamsVA$293k0
EDISON MEMORIAL TOWER CORPORATIONEdisonNJ$293k1
Performing Arts Association of St Joseph IncSaint JosephMO$293k1
PHILADELPHIA ASIAN AMERICAN FILM FESTIVAPhiladelphiaPA$293k0
TS 2 DEVELOPMENT CORPORATIONNewarkNJ$293k0
PUNTA GORDA SYMPHONY INCPunta GordaFL$293k0
CROW RIVER PLAYERS INCNew LondonMN$293k4
IRES FOUNDATIONSt PaulMN$293k0
AMERICAN TRADITIONS VOCAL COLLECTION INCSavannahGA$293k1
Golden Isles Arts & Humanities Association IncBrunswickGA$293k1
THE CITIZEN SOLDIERS EDUCATION FOUNDATION INCStauntonVA$293k2
DEATH OF CLASSICAL INCBrooklynNY$293k1
High Concept LaboratoriesChicagoIL$293k0
ARTS FOUNDATION FOR MARTIN COUNTY INCStuartFL$293k0
Walton Band Parents Association IncMariettaGA$293k0
CICERO INDEPENDIENTE NFPCiceroIL$293k4
CITY OF MIAMI BLACK POLICE PRECINCT AND COURTHOUSE MUSEUM INCMiamiFL$293k1
Grand County Historical AssociationHot Sulphur SpringsCO$293k0
HARMON RECOVERY FOUNDATIONLa QuintaCA$293k0
CHAMBER MUSIC RALEIGH INCRaleighNC$293k1
SRI SUDARSHANA SEVA SAMITHI USA INCAustinTX$293k0
CLE ELUM DOWNTOWN ASSOCIATIONCle ElumWA$293k0
CASA DOLORES C/O CLAUDIA MCLAUGHLINCarpinteriaCA$293k1
THE QUILT INSTITUTEINCLa GrangeTX$292k0
ARKANSAS SPORTS HALL OF FAME INCNorth Little RockAR$292k1
PENNSYLVANIA STATE POLICE HISTORICAL EDUCATIONAL & MEMORIALHersheyPA$292k0
ARTSQUEST FOUNDATIONBethlehemPA$292k1