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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 384 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
Burlington County Footlighters IncorporatedCinnaminsonNJ$177k0
BALLET RESOURCE ACTIVE VOLUNTEER ASSOCIATIONDana PointCA$177k2
HAWAII CRAFTSMENHonoluluHI$177k0
MORRIS CHINESE ACADEMYParsippanyNJ$177k7
THE ARGENTINE TANGO SOCIETYStoweVT$177k1
CITY TAVERN PRESERVATION FOUNDATIONWashingtonDC$177k2
LEADERSHIP AMARILLO & CANYONAmarilloTX$177k1
KAYAKALPA ALCHEMY FOUNDATIONGlen EllenCA$177k0
EDISON FESTIVAL OF LIGHT INCFort MyersFL$177k0
GOTHAM PERFORMING ARTS INCNew YorkNY$177k0
ST LOUIS FILMWORKSSaint LouisMO$177k0
CITY MARKET ART CENTER INCSavannahGA$176k0
HEIDER CENTER ARTS BOARD INCWest SalemWI$176k2
WILLIAM KERR LEADERSHIP AND HISTORIC PRESERVATION SOCIETY CORPAnn ArborMI$176k0
OPERA PROJECT COLUMBUS INCColumbusOH$176k4
Dialogue FoundationBountifulUT$176k1
PLAY AMONG THE STARS THEATRE GROUPSalemNH$176k0
TEHACHAPI ARTS COMMISSIONKeeneCA$176k0
HEWNOAKS ARTIST COLONYPortlandME$176k1
LITTLETON COMMUNITY MUSIC ASSOCIATIONCentennialCO$176k6
Interplay Jazz & Arts IncHartlandVT$176k4
SEAWOOD FOUNDATIONSan JoseCA$176k0
ARTILLERY COMPANY OF NEWPORTNewportRI$176k0
SOCIETY OF MAYFLOWER DESCENDANTS IN CONNECTICUTMiddletownCT$176k0
BORINQUEN DANCE THEATRE INCRochesterNY$176k1
GHAROAA INCKing Of PrussiaPA$176k0
Western North Carolina Historical Association IncAshevilleNC$176k1
KENTUCKY AUTHOR FORUM INCLouisvilleKY$176k1
STANLEY AREA HISTORICAL SOCIETYStanleyWI$176k0
Bombazo Dance CoBronxNY$176k0
East End Theatre and Performing ArtsEast ProvidenceRI$176k0
SARAH JACOB FOUNDATIONBedfordPA$176k0
DIGITAL STONE PROJECTLivingstonNY$176k0
SEATTLE ARCHITECTURAL FOUNDATIONSeattleWA$176k1
SIERRA GOLD PARKS FOUNDATIONGrass ValleyCA$176k0
BEDFORD HISTORICAL SLAVE FOUNDATIONBedfordVA$176k0
VALPARAISO CREATIVE COUNCIL INCValparaisoIN$176k0
Childrens Museum of the Brazos ValleyBryanTX$176k2
KAROUSEL KIDS INCClaremontCA$176k0
Friends of the New Jersey Transportation Heritage Center IncPhillipsburgNJ$176k0
CORAL SPRINGS FESTIVAL OF THE ARTSCoral SpringsFL$176k0
High Stepping NationalsUppr MarlboroMD$176k0
MISSOULA FAIRGROUNDS FOUNDATIONMissoulaMT$176k0
AMERICAN POMEROY HISTORIC GENEALOGICAL ASSOCIATION INCSyracuseNY$176k0
ARTHA FOUNDATION INCDelray BeachFL$176k0
FIESTA DC INCWashingtonDC$176k0
Oak Park River Forest Civic TheatreOak ParkIL$176k1
CREATIVE DOWNTOWN APPLETON INCAppletonWI$176k1
Prince Dance CompanyKamuelaHI$176k0
HAWAII KOREAN CULTURAL CENTERHonoluluHI$176k0