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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 327 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
PROFESSIONAL THEATRE AND DANCE YOUTH ACADEMYChicagoIL$234k1
JEFFERSON SYMPHONY ASSOCIATIONGoldenCO$234k0
RAINIER CLUB HISTORIC FOUNDATIONSeattleWA$234k0
DADA BHAGWAN CHARITABLE INCMidwest CityOK$234k0
BRADFORD COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETYTowandaPA$234k0
ROVER DRAMAWERKSPlanoTX$234k6
EAKINS PRESS FOUNDATIONNew YorkNY$234k1
MIDWEST LUMBER MUSEUM INCClintonIA$234k0
PRAIRIELAND HERITAGE MUSEUM INSTITUTEJacksonvilleIL$234k0
Basin ArtsLafayetteLA$234k0
HARRISONBURG-ROCKINGHAM HISTORICAL SOCIETYDaytonVA$234k1
PUBLIC SQUARE AMPLIFIED INCNewarkNJ$234k1
ALMOSTFREETOALLINCAuburnCA$234k0
FORT WAYNE AIR SHOW INCFort WayneIN$234k0
AIKEN COMMUNITY THEATRE INCAikenSC$234k0
IRANIAN CULTURAL FOUNDATION-HOUSTONHoustonTX$234k0
BOISE BAROQUE INCBoiseID$234k3
AMERICAN FRIENDS OF THE SHANGHAI MUSEUM INCNew YorkNY$234k0
BERKSHIRE DANCE THEATRE INCAdamsMA$234k0
FICTIONAL ARTISTS' CONTEMPORARY THEATRESAN FRANCISCOSan FranciscoCA$234k2
SAMUEL LAWRENCE FOUNDATIONDel MarCA$234k0
ST PETERSBURG CLEARWATER FILM SOCIETY INCSt PetersburgFL$234k0
SEATTLE CHINESE ASSOCIATIONBellevueWA$234k0
Cerimon HousePortlandOR$234k2
Southern Maryland Boot ScootersMechanicsvilleMD$234k0
IRANIAN ASSOCIATION OF BOSTON INCWatertownMA$234k0
GENEVA HISTORICAL SOCIETYGenevaIL$234k1
GRAND MEADOW HERITAGE COMMISSION INCWashtaIA$233k0
SOUTHWEST MUSICAL ARTS FOUNDATIONScottsdaleAZ$233k0
PEGASUS MUSICAL SOCIETYDallasTX$233k1
Friends of the Arkansas Missouri RailroadSpringdaleAR$233k0
Village Fine Arts AssociationMilfordMI$233k2
THE COLUMBIA MEMORIAL SPACE SCIENCE LEAR COLUMBIA MEMORIAL SCIENCE CENTERDowneyCA$233k2
UNLABELED THEATRE COMPANYEdinaMN$233k2
RIDGEFIELD GUILD OF ARTISTSRidgefieldCT$233k3
SANCTUARY ARTS SCHOOLShreveportLA$233k0
BOURBON CAPITAL COMMUNITY ALLIANCE INCBardstownKY$233k0
Groupmuse Foundation IncNew YorkNY$233k1
MENDOCINO PERFORMING ARTS COMPANYMendocinoCA$233k0
NAPLES ART DISTRICT INCNaplesFL$233k0
SOUTHWEST SEMINARS INCSanta FeNM$233k2
PLAYA DEL FUEGO INCPhiladelphiaPA$233k0
A Company of GirlsPortlandME$233k1
AMERICAN COALITION FOR PUBLIC RADIOWashingtonDC$233k3
THE COMMON ACRESeattleWA$233k2
Friends of the Maine State Museum IncAugustaME$233k0
THE BEREA CITY CLUB INCBereaOH$233k0
Crowded Fire Theater CompanySan FranciscoCA$233k0
Reacting Consortium IncSan FranciscoCA$233k0
IRVINGTON HISTORICAL SOCIETY INCIndianapolisIN$233k0