Skip to main content
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 352 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
SHAKER HISTORICAL SOCIETYShaker HtsOH$205k1
The RoustaboutsSan DiegoCA$205k1
NORTHWEST ASSOCIATION OF PERFORMING ARTSPortlandOR$205k0
WALTER ELWOOD MUSEUMAmsterdamNY$205k0
VERO BEACH ART CLUB INCVero BeachFL$205k0
St Marys Childrens Theatre IncSaint MarysGA$205k5
RUACH INCMilwaukeeWI$205k0
MILWAUKEE YOUTH ARTS CENTER FOUNDATION INCMilwaukeeWI$205k0
New Hampshire Farm Museum IncMiltonNH$205k0
EDGE SCHOOL OF THE ARTS DANCE LEGACY INCJamaicaNY$205k1
JAPAN ARTS INCDavieFL$205k0
STEINWAY SOCIETY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA GRIMESAltamonte SpringsFL$205k0
Cresson Lake Playhouse IncEbensburgPA$205k2
NORTH FORK BREAST HEALTH COALITION INCRiverheadNY$205k0
DEMENG FOUNDATIONBellevueWA$205k0
DULUTH SUPERIOR PUBLIC ACCESS COMMUNITY TELEVISIONDuluthMN$205k2
PALISADES AMERICANISM PARADE ASSOCIATIONPacific PalisadesCA$204k0
COUNCIL OF EWE ASSOCIATION OF NORTH AMERCharlotteNC$204k0
MUSICAL EMPOWERMENT INCCarrboroNC$204k0
HISTORIC KIRKWOOD TRAIN STATION FOUNDATIONKirkwoodMO$204k0
THEATRE LEAGUE OF SOUTH FLORIDA INCMiamiFL$204k1
EXPOSED BRICK THEATRESaint PaulMN$204k3
THE WINDMAR FOUNDATIONWilmingtonDE$204k1
THE STAUNTON AUGUSTA ART CENTER INCStauntonVA$204k2
TRUCKEE COMMUNITY THEATERTruckeeCA$204k0
MANASSAS BATTLEFIELD MUSEUM INCCentrevilleVA$204k0
Aequalis Inc dba The Core EnsembleLake WorthFL$204k2
Arts Council of Southwestern Indiana IncEvansvilleIN$204k1
New York African Chorus Ensemble IncNew YorkNY$204k1
THURSTON COMMUNITY TELEVISIONOlympiaWA$204k3
AFRICAN IMMIGRANT FAMILY SERVICES INCOmahaNE$204k1
JOOKENDER COMMUNITY INITIATIVES INCFraminghamMA$204k3
PCS EDUCATIONAL FOUNDATION INCWexfordPA$204k4
Instruments 4 AfricaGarlandTX$204k1
The Schola CantorumLos AltosCA$204k0
WAREHAM HALL INCManhattanKS$204k1
THE AMERICAN GRAFFITI MUSEUM INCTrentonNJ$204k1
ALTONA HOUSING DEVELOPMENT FUND CO INCAltonaNY$204k0
National Capital Radio and Television MuseumBowieMD$204k0
Minnesota African American Hertiage Museum and GalleryMinneapolisMN$204k1
Yates County Genealogical and Historical SocietyPenn YanNY$204k0
HUNTINGTON DANCE THEATRE LTDHuntingtonWV$204k1
ARTS CONNECTION FOUNDATION INCDoralFL$204k0
RIVERFRONT PLAYHOUSE A NONPROFIT PUBLIC BENEFIT COReddingCA$204k0
BROOKLYN YOUTH MUSIC PROJECT INCBrooklynNY$204k1
HISTORIC HOPEWELL FOUNDATION INCHopewellVA$204k0
TEXAS AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION & HERITAGE CENTERSeguinTX$204k1
FINNISH HERITAGE SOCIETYBerkeleyCA$204k0
Delaware Valley Opera CorpLake HuntingtonNY$204k0
ALABAMA MUSIC EDUCATORS ASSOCIATION INCCullmanAL$204k3