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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 33 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
KALAMAZOO INSTITUTE OF ARTSKalamazooMI$5.3M4
NORMAN ROCKWELL MUSEUM AT STOCKBRIDGE INCStockbridgeMA$5.3M6
INTERNATIONAL SOCIETY OF AESTHETIC PLASTIC SURGERYMount RoyalNJ$5.3M1
MADISON MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART INCMadisonWI$5.3M1
COLONEL JAMES N PRITZKER LIBRARY OF THE CITIZEN SOLDIERKenoshaWI$5.3M3
WSKG PUBLIC TELECOMMUNICATIONS COUNCILVestalNY$5.2M3
GREAT LAKES THEATER FESTIVAL INCClevelandOH$5.2M3
USS CONSTITUTION MUSEUM INCBostonMA$5.2M4
THE LUIS A FERRE FOUNDATION INCSan JuanPR$5.2M3
ARIZONA MUSICFEST INCScottsdaleAZ$5.2M2
FREEMAN ARTS PAVILION INCSelbyvilleDE$5.2M1
VAGABOND SCHOOL OF THE DRAMA INCFlat RockNC$5.2M0
WONDERTREK CHILDREN'S MUSEUMBrainerdMN$5.2M2
MOUNT BAKER THEATREBellinghamWA$5.2M1
FIRST STAGE MILWAUKEEMilwaukeeWI$5.2M4
CROW CANYON ARCHAEOLOGICAL CENTERCortezCO$5.2M5
HISTORIC JAYHAWK THEATRE INCTopekaKS$5.2M0
SHUNPIKESeattleWA$5.2M1
THE PLANETARY SOCIETYPasadenaCA$5.2M6
OLD ART BUILDINGLelandMI$5.2M0
NATIONAL SOCIETY OF GENETIC COUNSELORSChicagoIL$5.2M0
THE SLOMO AND CINDY SILVIAN FOUNDATION INCMelvilleNY$5.2M3
BALBOA PARK CULTURAL PARTNERSHIPSan DiegoCA$5.2M1
PENINSULA ARTS GUILDMenlo ParkCA$5.2M3
COLORADO MUSIC FESTIVAL & CENTER FOR MUSICAL ARTSBoulderCO$5.2M1
MILWAUKEE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA ENDOWMENTMilwaukeeWI$5.2M0
SHELBURNE MUSEUM INCShelburneVT$5.2M3
CINCINNATI BASEBALL MUSEUMCincinnatiOH$5.1M1
The Z Space StudioSan FranciscoCA$5.1M1
LONGYEAR FOUNDATIONChestnut HillMA$5.1M4
ALONZO KING LINES BALLETSan FranciscoCA$5.1M5
GREATER MIAMI OPERA INCMiamiFL$5.1M5
STATE THEATRE CENTER FOR THE ARTS INCEastonPA$5.1M3
AMERICAN BOOKSELLERS ASSOCIATION INCHarrisonNY$5.1M7
CHARLESTON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRACharlestonSC$5.1M1
Full Spectrum Features NFPChicagoIL$5.1M2
THE PASADENA SYMPHONY ASSOCIATIONPasadenaCA$5.1M1
HAWAII SYMPHONY ORCHESTRAHonoluluHI$5.1M1
KOHL CHILDREN'S MUSEUM OF GREATER CHICAGO INCGlenviewIL$5.1M5
THE PEOPLE'S LIGHT & THEATRE COMPANYMalvernPA$5.1M3
THEATRE FOR CHILDREN INC DBA B STREET THEATRESacramentoCA$5.1M1
SHAKESPEARE GUILD OF LOS ANGELES INCLos AngelesCA$5.1M0
CENTER STAGE ASSOCIATES INCBaltimoreMD$5.1M5
ALAMEDA THEATER CONSERVANCYSan AntonioTX$5.1M0
LAKE STATES DAIRY CENTER INCFair OaksIN$5.1M0
SMOKY HILLS PUBLIC TELEVISION CORPBunker HillKS$5.1M1
IMAGINATION STAGE INCBethesdaMD$5.1M2
ARTS FOR HEALING AND JUSTICE NETWORKLong BeachCA$5.1M1
OMAHA CONSERVATORY OF MUSICOmahaNE$5.1M2
Victoria MansionPortlandME$5.1M1