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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 353 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
THE COMPOUND INCBaltimoreMD$204k1
MAULIOLA KEEHIMililaniHI$204k1
KANSAS OIL MUSEUM INCEl DoradoKS$204k0
WERE LISTENING INCLewesDE$204k0
INTERSECTIONINCChathamNY$204k1
MAGNOLIA PLANTATION FOUNDATIONCharlestonSC$204k0
BITTERSWEET FOUNDATIONWashingtonDC$204k0
JOURNAL OF THE HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHYNew HavenCT$204k0
USA IRISH DANCE ALLIANCEOrwigsburgPA$204k0
UTAH YOUTH SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA ASSOCIATIONSalt Lake CityUT$204k2
THE FOUNDATION FOR THE JOURNAL OF COMPARATIVE POLITICS INCNew YorkNY$204k0
PLAYERS GUILD AT SUGAR HILL INCSugar HillGA$203k0
JAZZ HAMILTON ARTS FOUNDATION INCOrlandoFL$203k0
PALO ALTO CHINESE SCHOOLPalo AltoCA$203k0
TOLEDO REPERTOIRE COMPANYToledoOH$203k0
Arch Social Community Networks IncBaltimoreMD$203k0
THE CHILDREN'S BALLET INCDanvilleIN$203k2
HEART OF AMERICA ANTIQUE STEAM ENGINE AND MODEL ASMc LouthKS$203k0
WELLSBORO FOUNDATION INCWellsboroPA$203k0
PUBLIC MEDIA OF NEW ENGLAND INCHaverhillMA$203k1
DESCENDANTS OF THE SIGNERS OF THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE INCAvonCT$203k0
ROGERS LITTLE THEATERRogersAR$203k0
Siskiyou County Arts CouncilMount ShastaCA$203k1
THE ASSOCIATION FOR THE STUDY OF NATIONALITIES INCNew YorkNY$203k7
Central Lancaster County HomeschoolLancasterPA$203k0
KITSAP COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETYBremertonWA$203k0
James River WritersRichmondVA$203k0
COMMITTEE OF THE PROPRIETORS OF THE COMMON AND UNDIVIDED LAND IN NEW HAVENNew HavenCT$203k0
Matheatre CorporationCheyenneWY$203k2
Delta Festival BalletMetairieLA$203k0
Belmont Trolley IncBelmontNC$203k0
LONGWOOD SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA INCWest NewtonMA$203k2
Lebanese American FoundationLos AngelesCA$203k0
SouthEastern Young Artists IncGainesvilleGA$203k0
ELLEN JOHNSON SIRLEAF PRESIDENTIAL FOUNDATIONWashingtonDC$203k1
Children's Literature AssociationPurcellvilleVA$203k0
HAVRE DE GRACE MARITIME MUSEUM INCHavre De GraceMD$203k0
OMAHA CHAMBER MUSIC SOCIETYOmahaNE$203k0
FILIPINO AMERICAN NATIONAL HISTORICAL SOCIETY TEXAS INCHoustonTX$203k5
ASPIRE COMMUNITY THEATRE INCHaydenID$203k0
Fort Mill History MuseumFort MillSC$203k0
THE ARLINGTON CHORALEArlingtonVA$203k0
DANCE CANVAS INCAtlantaGA$203k1
HISTORIC FALLSINGTON INCFallsingtonPA$203k1
Federation of Hellenic American Societie of Phila and Greater Delaware Valley IncPhiladelphiaPA$203k0
FILM FATALES NYC INCLos AngelesCA$203k2
Mountain Air Community Fund IncBurnsvilleNC$203k0
CENTRAL STATES THRESHERMEN REUNION INCPontiacIL$203k0
ARTE NOIRSeattleWA$203k2
NORTH STREET PLAYHOUSE INCOnancockVA$202k1