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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 507 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
WATONWAN COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETYMadeliaMN$102k0
AMERICAN FRIENDS OF YESHIVA ZICHRON DAVIDFlushingNY$102k0
EMIT THEATRE INCBrooklynNY$102k0
AMERICAN CONSERVATION FILM FESTIVAL INCShepherdstownWV$102k0
Dancing Angels IncAutryvilleNC$102k0
ACTION THEATRE CONSERVATORY INCCliftonNJ$102k1
RameeloIrvineCA$102k0
TEXANS FOR THE ARTS FOUNDATIONAustinTX$102k1
TEAM SUNSHINE PERFORMANCE CORPPhiladelphiaPA$102k3
Redwood PlayhouseGarbervilleCA$102k3
ARTHOUSE2B INCORPORATEDNew YorkNY$102k1
NEEDHAM COMMUNITY THEATRE INCORPORATEDNeedhamMA$102k0
PORT AUSTIN COMMUNITY PLAYERSPort AustinMI$102k0
Sociadade Flore AsorianaChowchillaCA$102k0
Fulton County Historical Society IncRochesterIN$102k0
LOCK ONE COMMUNITY ARTS INCNew BremenOH$102k0
INSTITUTE OF ITALIAN AND ITALIANNew BrunswickNJ$102k0
CIFFCincinantiOH$102k0
WASHINGTON SQUARE ASSOCIATION MUSIC FUNDNew YorkNY$102k0
MUIR-CHASE FOUNDATIONLos AngelesCA$102k0
CHAUTAUQUA DANCE CIRCLE INCChautauquaNY$102k0
NATIONAL COLLEGIATE CHORAL MIKE MCGAGHIESt PaulMN$102k1
RUMI ACADEMYOak ParkCA$102k0
SOCIADADE BOA FEKermanCA$102k0
SOUTHERN OHIO FORGE AND ANVILTroyOH$102k0
DEKE SLAYTON MEMORIAL SPACE AND BICYCLE MUSEUMSpartaWI$102k1
FRIENDS OF BAILEY PARKCamp PointIL$102k0
TAPPAN WASHINGTON MEMORIAL CORPORATIONNew YorkNY$101k0
ACADEMY OF ETHICS AND LEGAL MEDICINEIrvineCA$101k0
STOMPHoraceND$101k0
SWEET ADELINES INTERNATIONALMoorheadMN$101k0
FRIENDS OF THE WASHINGTON THEATER NFPQuincyIL$101k0
COLOR THE BLOCKSacramentoCA$101k4
Turkish American Orchestra IncNew YorkNY$101k0
WORMSLOE INSTITUTE FOR ENVIRONMENTAL HISTORYINCC/O CRAIG BARROWSavannahGA$101k0
MAINE MILITARY MUSEUM & LEARNING CENTERSouth PortlandME$101k0
DUNDEE BAND BOOSTERSDundeeMI$101k0
CASS COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETYPlattsmouthNE$101k3
MUSEUM OF WORK AND CULTURE PRESERVATION FOUNDATIONWoonsocketRI$101k0
BROOKLYN ART SONG SOCIETY INCNew YorkNY$101k2
Musicians of the San Francisco SymphonySan FranciscoCA$101k0
FRIENDS FOR OLD BETHPAGE VILLAGE REWilliston ParkNY$101k0
ARCHITALXPortlandME$101k0
TEHACHAPI COMMUNITY THEATRE ASSOCIATIONTehachapiCA$101k0
CLARK LAKE SPIRIT FOUNDATION INC C/O ELAINE STEWARTClarklakeMI$101k0
PORTUGAL DAY INCMountainsideNJ$101k0
LAKE CUMBERLAND PERFORMING ARTS SERIES INCSomersetKY$101k0
THE WARNER HOUSE ASSOCIATIONPortsmouthNH$101k0
THE OMAHA INSTITUTE FOR NONPROFIT JOURNALISMOmahaNE$101k0
REMEMBER ME ROSE GARDEN INCShanksvillePA$101k0