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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 377 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
EUBIE BLAKE NATIONAL JAZZ INSTITUTE & CULTURAL CENTERBaltimoreMD$183k1
RAYMOND HAN AND PAUL KELLOGG FOUNDATION INCRiversideCT$183k1
ARTISTS COLLECTIVE SPARTANBURG INCSpartanburgSC$183k0
THE NEW YORK CLASSICAL PLAYERS INCNew YorkNY$183k0
LAUGHING STOCK THEATRE COMPANYSun ValleyID$183k1
GRAHAM COUNTY HISTORICAL ASSOCRobbinsvilleNC$183k0
LAWTON COMMUNITY THEATER INCLawtonOK$183k0
SWELL FOUNDATIONSan FranciscoCA$183k0
GOLDEN GATE PHILHARMONICSan FranciscoCA$183k1
DESIGN WITH PURPOSE INCLaguna BeachCA$183k2
ROCKPORT SONGWRITER ASSOCIATIONFultonTX$183k0
PA MUSEUMSHarrisburgPA$183k1
ENSEMBLE MISE-EN INCNew YorkNY$183k1
Society of the Danube Swabians of the USADes PlainesIL$183k0
VILLAGE ART CLUB INCBentonvilleAR$183k2
SPHERE ENSEMBLE LLCDenverCO$183k5
GLOBAL LOUNGE INCORPORATEDBoiseID$182k0
AMERICANS WHO TELL THE TRUTHBrooksvilleME$182k1
Tacoma Urban Performing Arts CenterTacomaWA$182k0
Inspire Studios Center for Performing Arts IncAugustaGA$182k2
THE HUDSON VALLEY RIVERBANK HISTORIC SITESCornwall On HudsonNY$182k0
INTO LIGHT INCRising SunMD$182k2
CROSSING BORDERS MUSIC COLLECTIVEChicagoIL$182k3
THE CAROLINE COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY INCDentonMD$182k0
YOUTH ORCHESTRA CHINESE YOUTH CORPS OF NEW YORK INCBrooklynNY$182k4
CORONADO PHILHARMONIA ORCHESTRACoronadoCA$182k0
PERRIS VALLEY FILIPINO-AMERICAN ASSOCIATION INCPerrisCA$182k9
JIVA PERFORMING ARTS INCLong Island CityNY$182k1
LAURA RIDING JACKSON FOUNDATIONINCVer BeachFL$182k0
FORST INN ARTS COLLECTIVE INCTisch MillsWI$182k0
PHOENIX THEATRE ENSEMBLE INCNew YorkNY$182k0
KOKOMO SYMPHONIC SOCIETY INCKokomoIN$182k0
Sammamish Chinese SchoolSammamishWA$182k0
IRISH OUTREACH SAN DIEGO INCSan DiegoCA$182k1
BELLEFONTE ART MUSEUM FOR CENTRE COUNTYBellefontePA$182k1
GARFIELD CENTER FOUNDATION INCChestertownMD$182k0
METTLER STUDIOS INCChampaignIL$182k1
HUMOTA MOVIE GROUP INCHumboldtIA$182k0
The Pioneer Bluffs Foundation IncMatfield GreenKS$182k0
Sandhills Womans Exchange Cabin Preservation OrgPinehurstNC$182k1
STONE HOUSE FOUNDATIONStephens CityVA$182k1
EAU CLAIRE JAZZ INCEau ClaireWI$182k1
IRON MOUNTAIN RAILWAYJacksonMO$182k0
YOUNG INDIAN CULTURE GROUP INCNew Hyde ParkNY$182k2
Cinestudio IncHartfordCT$182k2
ETHIO 360 MEDIA INCAnnandaleVA$182k0
LANTERN PUBLISHING & MEDIAWoodstockNY$182k2
Black Hills Museum of Natural HistoryHill CitySD$182k0
SAINT ANDREWS SOCIETY OF MAINEBrunswickME$182k0
GRESHAM HISTORICAL SOCIETYGreshamOR$182k0