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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 378 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
NEW ENGLAND BALLET THEATRE OF CONNECTICUT INCAvonCT$182k1
North Carolina Chamber Music InstitRaleighNC$182k2
Halau O Ka Hanu Lehua IncWailukuHI$182k0
Madison County Historical SocietyOneidaNY$182k2
Ritz Theatre Crockett IncCrockettTX$182k0
THE YU FAMILY FOUNDATION INCWaynePA$182k0
I SOUND PERFORMING ARTS COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT INCSacramentoCA$182k1
CAROLINA PHILHARMONIC ENDOWMENTPinehurstNC$182k0
ROCK AUTISM INCCheektowagaNY$181k0
MUSEO DEL RECICLAJE INCHatilloPR$181k0
THE LINCOLN FORUMWilliamsburgVA$181k0
COMMUNITY ACTORS' STUDIO THEATRE INCAnnistonAL$181k0
STAGESTRUCK THE YOUNG PEOPLE'S OWN THEATREGoldsboroNC$181k0
CRAWFORD COUNTY FAIR ASSCOblongIL$181k0
BERKSHIRE BACH SOCIETY INCGreat BarringtonMA$181k0
SEATTLE WEAVERS GUILDSeattleWA$181k0
HUI O KUAPAKaunakakaiHI$181k5
Lady Hoofers Tap EnsemblePhiladelphiaPA$181k0
DESOTO FAMILY THEATRE INCSouthavenMS$181k0
PHILHARMONIA FOUNDATION C/0 JHPANew YorkNY$181k0
ArtHaus Foundation IncPort OrangeFL$181k1
ENTERTAINMENT INCWillistonND$181k0
RADIO EYE INCLexingtonKY$181k2
CAPITOL HILL JAZZ FOUNDATIONWashingtonDC$181k1
FreshLens ChicagoChicagoIL$181k1
DISCOVERY STATION AT HAGERSTOWN INCHagerstownMD$181k0
JOY ENGINE INCMilwaukeeWI$181k1
CHRISTMAS LIGHT UP CELEBRATION INCImperialPA$181k0
ASIAN CULTURAL EXPERIENCESalinasCA$181k0
Mohawk Valley Collective IncFort PlainNY$181k0
KAUAI CONCERT ASSOCIATIONLihueHI$181k0
Wendell Castle ProjectScottsvilleNY$181k0
EDGE ZONES INCMiami BeachFL$181k0
GREAT LAKES LIGHTHOUSE KEEPERS ASSOCIATIONMacKinaw CityMI$181k0
SOPHIA'S CHOICEChicagoIL$181k0
MTC PLAYERS INCMariettaGA$181k0
Duncan U Fletcher High School Band BoostersNeptune BeachFL$181k0
OAKLAND EAST BAY GAY MENS CHORUSOaklandCA$181k0
MUSEUM OF MINIATURE HOUSES AND OTHER COLLECTIONS INCCarmelIN$181k0
HEARTWOOD REGIONAL THEATER COMPANYDamariscottaME$181k2
CONNECTICUT VIRTUOSI CHAMBER ORCHESTRA INCNew BritainCT$181k1
PLAY SHARITY FOUNDATIONDemingNM$181k0
SLOVENIAN AMERICAN CULTURAL ASSOCIATION INCWilloughby HillsOH$181k0
3RD I SOUTH ASIAN INDEPENDENT FILMSan FranciscoCA$181k1
SKIPJACK HERITAGE INCChanceMD$181k0
REDWOOD CITY ART CENTER ART BIASSan CarlosCA$181k2
OPERATION ENCOREJamestownRI$181k0
FAIRHOPE ARTS & CRAFTS FESTIVAL FOUNDATIONFairhopeAL$181k0
LYNCH BALLET COMPANY INCHuntingtonNY$181k1
Beaumont Civic BalletBeaumontTX$181k3