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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 39 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
Marlboro School of Music IncPhiladelphiaPA$4.4M2
NATIONAL COWGIRL MUSEUM AND HALL OF FAME INCFort WorthTX$4.4M4
THE FILMMAKERS COLLABORATIVE INCMelroseMA$4.4M1
Stern Grove Festival AssociationSan FranciscoCA$4.4M5
DETROIT JAZZ FESTIVAL PRODUCTIONS INCHarper WoodsMI$4.4M1
IntuitCenter for IntuitiveOutsider ArtChicagoIL$4.4M1
ITALIAN AMERICAN CULTURAL SOCIETYClinton TownshipMI$4.4M0
ARTS & LEARNING CORPORATIONCosta MesaCA$4.4M2
GREENTRIKETacomaWA$4.4M5
CREATIVETSNashvilleTN$4.3M3
Houston Christian Broadcasters IncHoustonTX$4.3M4
CONCORD ANTIQUARIAN SOCIETY D/B/A CONCORD MUSEUMConcordMA$4.3M2
EAST BAY PERFORMING ARTS dba OAKLAND SYMPHONYOaklandCA$4.3M2
FOUNDATION FOR CONTEMPORARY ARTS INCNew YorkNY$4.3M2
SAINT LOUIS SYMPHONY ENDOWMENT TRUSTSaint LouisMO$4.3M0
CHICKASAW INKANA FOUNDATIONTupeloMS$4.3M0
Holocaust Memorial Committee IncMiami BeachFL$4.3M1
PALM BEACH DRAMAWORKS INCWest Palm BeachFL$4.3M3
THE SOCIETY OF THE CINCINNATIWashingtonDC$4.3M6
ALLENTOWN SYMPHONY ASSOCIATION INCAllentownPA$4.3M2
THE VIRGINIA AIR & SPACE CENTERHamptonVA$4.3M1
TRI-STATE CHRISTIAN TVMarionIL$4.3M0
HALEAKALA INCNew YorkNY$4.3M4
Southern Smoke FoundationHoustonTX$4.3M4
Colored Musicians Club of Buffalo New York IncBuffaloNY$4.3M1
CALIFORNIA HERITAGE INDIGENOUS RESEARCH PROJECTNevada CityCA$4.3M1
THE NEW GROUP INCNew YorkNY$4.3M2
VENICE THEATRE INCVeniceFL$4.3M0
DETROIT JAZZ FESTIVAL FOUNDATIONHarper WoodsMI$4.3M0
SOCIETY FOR THE PRESERVATION OF MARYLAND ANTIQUITIES INCBaltimoreMD$4.3M1
NEIGHBORHOOD PLAYHOUSE INCNew YorkNY$4.3M1
NEWARK PUBLIC RADIO INCNewarkNJ$4.3M4
YOUNG CONCERT ARTISTS INCNew YorkNY$4.3M3
BILL EDWARDS FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS INCSt PetersburgFL$4.3M1
Communities in Schools of Cameron CountySan BenitoTX$4.3M0
OWSLEY BROWN FRAZIER HISTORICAL ARMS MUSEUM FOUNDATION INCLouisvilleKY$4.3M3
WHITAKER CENTER FOR SCIENCE AND THE ARTSHarrisburgPA$4.3M3
SEWARD REDESIGN INCMinneapolisMN$4.3M3
SOUTH SHORE CONSERVATORY OF MUSIC INCHinghamMA$4.3M1
ADAMS PRESIDENTIAL CENTER AND FOUNDATION INCQuincyMA$4.3M2
NATIONAL WHITETAIL DEER EDUCATION FOUNDATIONCambridgeOH$4.3M2
WESTERN ANTIQUE AEROPLANE & AUTOMOBILE MUSEUMHood RiverOR$4.3M0
MAMACOCHA ANCESTRAL MEMORY INSTITUTE INCRaleighNC$4.3M2
LiveConnectionsorgPhiladelphiaPA$4.3M3
MUSIC OF THE BAROQUEChicagoIL$4.3M3
GRAND RAPIDS PUBLIC MUSEUM FOUNDATIONGrand RapidsMI$4.3M2
JUDD FOUNDATIONNew YorkNY$4.3M7
SUFFOLK COUNTY VANDERBILT MUSEUMCenterportNY$4.3M1
Lone Star Flight MuseumHoustonTX$4.3M4
SYRACUSE AREA LANDMARK THEATRESyracuseNY$4.3M1