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Updated through 2024NTEE A · Arts, Culture & Humanities

Arts, Culture & Humanities nonprofitexecutive pay

Median top-executive pay across 16,157 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
$59,800
The typical arts, culture & humanities nonprofit's highest-paid executive earns $59,800 in total reported compensation.
25th pct
$24k
75th pct
$107k
90th pct
$194k
16,157 organizations · 2019 – 2024
Percentile distribution

Where the middle 50% lands.

Half earn between $24k and $107k. That band is the interquartile range. The 90th percentile sits at $194k, roughly 3.2 times the median. That upper tail is where the largest organizations cluster.

PercentileTotal compMeans
90th$193,685Top 10% of earners
75th$107,34225% earn more than this
50th · median$59,800The typical executive
25th$23,76025% earn less than this
10th$7,50010% 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$15k$38,108$67k11,178
$1M – $10M$87k$125,336$180k4,194
$10M – $100M$242k$341,128$522k736
$100M – $500M$562k$771,220$1.3M45
Revenue bands with fewer than 5 organizations are not shown.
By role

Benchmark a specific Arts, Culture & Humanities role

Drill into median pay for individual leadership roles within arts, culture & humanities nonprofits.

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 40,937 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

40,937 organizations · Page 33 of 819

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
SCHOOL OF ARTS AND CULTURE AT MHPSan JoseCA$5M5
THE UNION FOR CONTEMPORARY ART INCOmahaNE$5M1
PUBLIC BROADCASTING FOUNDATION OF NORTHWEST OHIOToledoOH$5M3
PALM BEACH OPERA INCWest Palm BeachFL$5M3
WILLIAMSTOWN THEATRE FOUNDATIONINCWilliamstownMA$5M3
SITAR ARTS CENTERWashingtonDC$5M2
MONUMENT LAB INCPhiladelphiaPA$5M2
North Texas Performing ArtsPlanoTX$5M0
HUDSON LIBRARY & HISTORICAL SOCIETYHudsonOH$5M2
Black Ensemble Theater CorporationChicagoIL$5M2
THE TAMPA THEATRE INC A/K/A TAMPA THEATRE FOUNDATIONTampaFL$5M1
FORWARD IMPACTLos AngelesCA$5M5
JOHN MICHAEL KOHLER ARTS CENTER INCSheboyganWI$5M5
ASIAN AMERICAN JOURNALISTS ASSOCIATIONWashingtonDC$5M1
ST GEORGE MUSICAL THEATERSt GeorgeUT$5M1
LOWER MANHATTAN CULTURAL COUNCIL INCNew YorkNY$5M1
AMERICAN NUMISMATIC SOCIETYNew YorkNY$5M4
BOSTON ARTS ACADEMY FOUNDATION INCBostonMA$5M1
PENINSULA ARTS GUILDMenlo ParkCA$5M3
SAG HARBOR CINEMA ARTS CENTER INC CO SUSAN MEADSag HarborNY$5M4
CLAY CENTER FOR THE ARTS & SCIENCES OF WV INCCharlestonWV$5M3
YUNUS EMRE FOUNDATION INCWashingtonDC$5M1
GRAND RAPIDS ART MUSEUMGrand RapidsMI$5M2
CHINESE CULTURE FOUNDATION OF SAN FRANCISCOSan FranciscoCA$5M1
OREGON CENTER FOR CREATIVE LEARNINGMedfordOR$5M1
WESTMORELAND MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ARTGreensburgPA$5M3
BAINBRIDGE ISLAND MUSEUM OF ARTBainbridge IslandWA$5M4
CHARLES M SCHULZ MUSEUM AND RESEARCH CENTERSanta RosaCA$5M2
Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company IncWashingtonDC$5M2
The Richard H Driehaus MuseumChicagoIL$5M4
MILWAUKEE FILM INCMilwaukeeWI$5M3
CHRISTINA CULTURAL ARTS CENTER INCWilmingtonDE$5M1
ARTS CENTER OF COASTAL CAROLINAHilton Head IslandSC$5M1
REPERTOIRE INTERNATIONAL DE LITTERATURE MUSICALE INCNew YorkNY$5M4
THE WICK THEATRE & COSTUME MUSEUM INCBoca RatonFL$5M3
BERKELEY SOCIETY FOR THE PRESERVATION OF TRADITIONAL MUSICBerkeleyCA$5M6
BERKSHIRE PULSE INCHousatonicMA$4.9M1
BIRMINGHAM LANDMARKS INCBirminghamAL$4.9M1
MIZEL CENTER FOR ARTS AND CULTUREDenverCO$4.9M4
ARKANSAS EDUCATIONAL TELECOMMUNICATIONS NETWORK FOConwayAR$4.9M0
PEORIA RIVERFRONT MUSEUMPeoriaIL$4.9M2
STIRLING HARBOR FOUNDATION INCNew YorkNY$4.9M0
BUTLER INSTITUTE OF AMERICAN ARTYoungstownOH$4.9M2
SHAREWELLSanta MonicaCA$4.9M5
VERMONT COUNCIL ON THE ARTS INCMontpelierVT$4.9M1
PITTSBURGH GLASS CENTER INCPittsburghPA$4.9M4
COMUNIDADES INDIGENAS EN LIDERAZGO CORPLos AngelesCA$4.9M3
HERITAGE CONSERVANCY INCDoylestownPA$4.9M3
INNER-CITY ARTSLos AngelesCA$4.9M5
MONTCLAIR FILM FESTIVAL INCMontclairNJ$4.9M3