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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 342 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
TOWER-SOUDAN HISTORICAL SOCIETYTowerMN$216k0
CONDUCTORS RETREAT AT MEDOMAKAnn ArborMI$216k0
Circus BellaSan FranciscoCA$216k1
THE CENTER FOR INTERNATIONAL THEATRE DEVELOPMENTBaltimoreMD$216k0
KONA CHORAL SOCIETY INCKailua KonaHI$216k0
HARTFORD PUBLIC ACCESS TELEVISION INCHartfordCT$216k1
LIVE OAK FOUNDATIONSanfordNC$216k0
Oxford Area Historical AssociationOxfordPA$216k0
ROCHESTER GAY & LESBIAN FILM & VIDEO FESTIVAL INCRochesterNY$216k0
AMERICAN FILM FOUNDATIONSanta MonicaCA$216k0
WHITE PASS HISTORICAL SOCIETYPackwoodWA$216k0
DANTE ALIGHIERI SOCIETY INCBingham FarmsMI$216k0
SUNSETS AT PIER 60 SOCIETY INCClearwaterFL$216k0
EAST LONGMEADOW VETERANS MEMORIAL CMTEEast LongmeadowMA$216k0
LUCAS ARTS & HUMANITIESLucasKS$216k0
MERRILL ARTS CENTERWoodburyMN$216k1
NEW HORIZON THEATER INCPittsburghPA$216k0
Southern Communication Volunteers IncMemphisTN$216k2
THE INTERNATIONAL FRIENDSHIP CENTER OF HIGHLANDSHighlandsNC$216k0
BLUEGRASS COUNTRY FOUNDATIONWashingtonDC$215k0
TRADEMARK THEATERSaint PaulMN$215k1
TRUMBULL HIGH SCHOOL GOLDEN EAGLE MARCHING BAND CORPORATIONTrumbullCT$215k0
SUSQUEHANNA VALLEY CHORALELewisburgPA$215k0
DELTA SYMPHONY ORCHESTRAJonesboroAR$215k0
ROSWELL MUSEUM & ART CENTER FOUNDATIONRoswelllNM$215k1
ROCKY MOUNTAIN HIGHWAYColorado SpringsCO$215k1
The Glenwood Springs Historical Society IncGlenwood SpringsCO$215k1
FOOTHILLS RESOURCE GROUPKnoxvilleTN$215k1
Skagit Opera DBA Pacific Northwest OperaBellinghamWA$215k0
WALNUT CREEK HISTORICAL SOCIETYWalnut CreekCA$215k0
Theatre Flamenco of San FranciscoSan FranciscoCA$215k0
African Artists Community Development Project IncWest TisburyMA$215k0
RUSSIAN EDUCATIONAL CENTERMasonOH$215k3
MISSION CITY SWINGSan FranciscoCA$215k0
Steel City Improv TheaterPittsburghPA$215k2
THE MOUNTAIN ARTISTS GUILD INCPrescottAZ$215k0
GILMORE MARGUERITE CHAR FDNSaint LouisMO$215k1
CHIPPEWA COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETYMontevideoMN$215k1
Ballet Ensemble of TexasCoppellTX$215k0
BOSTON THEATER COMPANY INCJamaica PlainMA$215k0
CENTRE FOR THE ARTS INCNew RoadsLA$215k0
TEN THOUSAND VILLAGESLincolnNE$215k1
ARIEL RIVKA DANCE INCJersey CityNJ$215k1
Innervision Theatre Arts Center IncBrooklynNY$215k1
WEG FILMS INCMiamiFL$215k4
The Massachusetts Review IncHadleyMA$215k3
ASTORIA FILM FESTIVAL INCAstoriaNY$215k1
Encinitas Ballet Academy and Arts CenterEncinitasCA$215k2
YOUNG MUSICIANS OF ALAMANCEBurlingtonNC$215k0
THAMES VALLEY MUSIC SCHOOL INCNew LondonCT$215k1