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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 325 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
CABINET OF CURIOSITY INC NFPOak ParkIL$237k1
ROCHESTER PUBLIC RADIORochesterMN$237k3
Embarrass Region Fair AssociationEmbarrassMN$237k0
AURORA COLONY HISTORICAL SOCIETYAuroraOR$237k0
COLERAIN CENTER FOR EDUCATION PRESERVATION AND THE ARTSSpruce CreekPA$237k0
DANCE STUDIES ASSOCIATIONEvanstonIL$237k1
RISING STAR THEATRE COMPANYDubuqueIA$237k1
CHICAGO CULTURAL PERFORMING ARTS AND MEDIA ALLIANCChicagoIL$237k0
AVOKADO ARTISTS INCPlacitasNM$237k1
Republic Of LettersShorelineWA$237k1
DREAMALITY INCRandolphNJ$237k0
Garfield Heritage SocietyLafoxIL$237k1
GILBERT HISTORICAL SOCIETY INCGilbertAZ$237k1
Community Music CenterPortlandOR$237k0
ASSOCIATED ARTISTS OF PITTSBURGHPittsburghPA$237k1
NELSON MARITIME ARTS FOUNDATIONRancho Palos VerdesCA$237k0
D WIDEMAN TR FBO NOTRE DAMECincinnatiOH$237k1
OREGON MOZART PLAYERSEugeneOR$237k1
COMMUNITY ARTS & EMPOWERMENTWatsonvilleCA$237k1
FLORIDA FEDERATION OF MUSIC CLUBS INCGainesvilleFL$237k0
GEORGE & LEAH MCKENNA MUSEUM OF AFRICAN AMERICAN ARTNew OrleansLA$237k1
PIPELINE THEATRE COMPANY INCNew YorkNY$237k2
METROPOLITAN YOUTH SYMPHONY INCLathrup VillageMI$236k1
THE MASTERWORK CHORUS INCMorristownNJ$236k0
LAGUNA BEACH CULTURAL ARTS CENTERLaguna BeachCA$236k0
RUTLAND AMATEUR HOCKEY ASSOCIATION INC CO ALLISON COTAWest RutlandVT$236k0
BRANFORD COMMUNITY TELEVISIONBranfordCT$236k0
Alabama Vocal AssociationElkmontAL$236k0
BACH BEETHOVEN & BRAHMS SOCIETY OF BOSTON INCBostonMA$236k2
MALAMA PUPUKEA-WAIMEAHaleiwaHI$236k0
LA RITA PERFORMING ARTS THEATRE INCDalhartTX$236k0
OKC Improv FoundationOklahoma CityOK$236k4
New Los Angeles Repertory CompanyNorth HollywoodCA$236k0
WESTFIELD AVIATION MUSEUM INCWestfieldMA$236k0
ORACLE PIANO SOCIETYTempeAZ$236k2
BEACH PARK RAILWAYAvon LakeOH$236k0
SRYT INC CHRISTOPHER BARKERHawthorneNJ$236k0
Palmer Museum of History and ArtPalmerAK$236k0
ST PAUL'S CATHEDRAL TRUST IN AMERICARichmondVA$236k0
ENKA SCHOOL DISTRICT BAND PARENTS INCEnkaNC$236k0
GALLERY NIGHT OF PENSACOLA INCPensacolaFL$236k1
Monroe-Walton Center for the Arts IncMonroeGA$236k1
FRIENDS OF THE OCEAN CITY POPS INCOcean CityNJ$236k0
INTERNATIONAL FOCUS INCRaleighNC$236k1
Cabots Museum FoundationDesert Hot SpringsCA$236k1
WENDYS SUBWAY INCBrooklynNY$236k1
MINI SOTA AGRICULTURAL CHILDRENS MUSEUMBensonMN$236k0
HISTORIC PRESERVATION TRUST OF BERKS COUNTYDouglassvillePA$236k1
B H FOXY FOUNDATION INCLos AngelesCA$236k1
TALLGRASS THEATRE COMPANYWest Des MoinesIA$236k0