Skip to main content
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 498 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
THE ASSOCIATION TO PRESERVE AFRICAN AMERICAN SOCIEOrlandoFL$106k0
SEVENARS CONCERTS INCNew YorkNY$106k0
Pearl City Historical OrganizationPearl CityIL$106k0
BOWERY ARTISTS INCNew YorkNY$105k0
LYRIC THEATRE INCPlatteSD$105k1
Historic Neighborhood TrustWilliamsportPA$105k0
SWISS HERITAGE SOCIETY INCBerneIN$105k3
The Chamber Music Society ofSaint PaulMN$105k0
ALLIANCE FRANCAISE DE SARASOTA INCSarasotaFL$105k0
NATIONAL CITY OTNC FOUNDATIONNational CityCA$105k0
BASIN STREET REGULARS INCORPORATEDSanta MariaCA$105k0
Association for Jewish TheatreWashingtonDC$105k0
Heritage FutureOrangeCA$105k2
Paxy IncMiamiFL$105k0
GRISSOM THEATRE BOOSTER CLUBHuntsvilleAL$105k0
Utah Suzuki Harp FoundationDraperUT$105k0
Visual Adjectives SEEDS IncDelray BeachFL$105k0
Yankton Area Arts AssociationYanktonSD$105k0
The Grace Foundation for the AppalachianBristolVA$105k0
COMMUNITY REVITALIZATION ALLIANCE INCMelbourneFL$105k0
THE BRET EASTERLING MOVEMENTLos AngelesCA$105k1
THE FLYING CARPET THEATER INCSunnysideNY$105k1
PORTUGUESE CULTURE & HISTORICAL CENTERWaipahuHI$105k0
THE PALM BEACH OPERA GUILD INCWest Palm BeachFL$105k0
HAVRE BENEATH THE STREETSHavreMT$105k0
LES YEUX ART FOUNDATION INCNew YorkNY$105k0
MISSOURI DANCE TEAM ASSOCSt CharlesMO$105k0
YAQUIS OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIABorrego SpringsCA$105k0
Chinese Culture Center IncUnionvilleCT$105k0
Guyana Cultural Association of New York INCBrooklynNY$105k0
PINK ARROW ARTSMontrosePA$105k0
Kids in Need FoundationDripping SpringsTX$105k0
ORDER SONS OF ITALY IN AMERICAEndicottNY$105k0
JEZEBEL PRODUCTIONS INC C/O GRETA SCHILLERNew YorkNY$105k2
Swanson Charity For The ArtsLaguna BeachCA$105k0
HERITAGE STAGE INCLexingtonMA$105k1
ARTS LAB OF SOUTH COUNTY INCTracys LandingMD$105k1
MALIBU FILM FOUNDATIONSunlandCA$105k1
Pittsburgh Chinese Culture Center IncPittsburghPA$105k0
MELODY OF CHINA INCSan FranciscoCA$105k0
Hardin County Armory Restoration FoundationKentonOH$105k0
ARAB AMERICAN ORGANIZATIONPhoenixAZ$105k0
A18 Missions IncParkerPA$105k0
Hispanic Organization of Latin Actors IncNew YorkNY$105k3
ANTIQUE STEAM AND GAS ENGINE CLUB IBoonvilleIN$105k0
THE WIEGAND FOUNDATION INCChesterfieldMO$105k0
STAND IN THE LIGHT MEMORY CHOIR INCEau ClaireWI$105k0
BLUE MOUNTAIN INCNew YorkNY$105k0
VICTORIA SYMPHONY SOCIETY ENDOWMENT TRUSTVictoriaTX$105k0
UKRAINIAN JERSEY CITYJersey CityNJ$105k0