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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 363 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
ALTON LITTLE THEATER INCORPORATEDAltonIL$195k3
OPERALEX INCLexingtonKY$195k0
The Capital Gallery SocietyBismarckND$195k0
PILOT LIGHT INCKnoxvilleTN$195k0
CULTURAL SOCIETY FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP BILINGUALISM RESOURCES AND INSPIRATIONSBarringtonRI$195k0
SARASOTA CHILDREN'S MUSEUM INCSarasotaFL$195k0
SAUGUS COMMUNITY TELEVISION INCSaugusMA$195k0
ELECTRIC EARTH CONCERTSPeterboroughNH$195k0
ITHACA COMMUNITY RADIO INCIthacaNY$195k1
CHILDRENS THEATRE OF LONG BEACHLong BeachCA$194k3
PORTAGE COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY INCStevens PointWI$194k0
ChemocessoriesManhattan BeachCA$194k0
BABYLON CITIZENS COUNCIL ON THE ARTS INCBabylonNY$194k0
ALBUMS OF HERITAGE FOUNDATIONChicagoIL$194k0
Yes BalloonHenricoVA$194k4
BricolagePittsburghPA$194k2
CRAIK-PATTON HOUSE FOUNDATION INCCharlestonWV$194k0
Self Knowledge Symposium FoundationFranklintonNC$194k0
Alchemy Theatre Troupe IncHuntingtonWV$194k0
RUNNING TO PLACES THEATRE COMPANY LTDIthacaNY$194k1
THIRUVALLUVAR TAMIL SCHOOL INCEdisonNJ$194k0
FANTASIA FAMILY MUSICRedondo BeachCA$194k0
FRIENDS OF GERMAN-AMRICAN CULTURAL CENTRGretnaLA$194k0
FOUNDATION TO ASSIST YOUNG MUSICIANLas VegasNV$194k0
New Choral Society of Central WestchesterScarsdaleNY$194k2
BENZIE AREA SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA INCFrankfortMI$194k0
CLIFFSIDE ARTISTS COLLABORATIVE INCHinckleyOH$194k0
Fab Lab Tulsa IncTulsaOK$194k1
THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF AVON PARKAvon ParkFL$194k0
DOLCE SUONO ENSEMBLE INCPhiladelphiaPA$194k1
Society for CalligraphyLos AngelesCA$194k0
TAMPA BAY TRIPLE THREAT THEATRE INCTampaFL$194k0
Fakir Musafar FoundationSan FranciscoCA$194k0
MARTIN COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETYFairmontMN$194k0
RIVERWORKS ART CENTER INCBeallsvilleMD$194k0
ROBOT GARDENLivermoreCA$194k0
THE FREDERICK CHILDRENS CHORUS INCFrederickMD$194k0
ROXY ANN GEM & MINERAL INCCentral PointOR$194k0
CAMPBELL COUNTY TRAINING SCHOOL COMPLEXConcordVA$194k0
HEARTLAND ACRES AGRIBITION CENTER INCIndependenceIA$194k0
RED SKELTON MUSEUM FOUNDATION INCVincennesIN$194k2
ROURKE ART GALLERY MUSEUMMoorheadMN$194k1
TOGETHER IN DANCE INCA NEW JERSEY NONPROFIT CORPLong Island CityNY$194k0
FLORIDA SURF FILM FESTIVAL INCNew Smyrna BeachFL$194k0
PENNSPORT SCHOOL OF DANCEPhiladelphiaPA$194k1
Northwest Documentary Arts & MediaPortlandOR$194k1
MCMINNVILLE COMMUNITY MEDIAMcMinnvilleOR$194k1
PHILADELPHIA FOLKLORE PROJECTPhiladelphiaPA$194k1
WE ARE INSTRUMENTAL INCPutnam StationNY$194k1
THE DORSET PLAYERS INCDorsetVT$194k0