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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 509 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
Plymale Private FoundationWilmingtonDE$101k0
PRIOR LAKE NEWS COMPASSPrior LakeMN$101k0
SHAMROCK PRODUCTIONSRenoNV$101k2
OLIVE HILL CENTER FOR ARTS AND HERITAGEOlive HillKY$101k0
CHICAGO WRITERS ASSOCIATIONEvanstonIL$101k0
HARPSWELL COMMUNITY BROADCASTINGHarpswellME$101k0
THE JOHNSON-HUMRICKHOUSE MUSEUM FOUNDATIONCoshoctonOH$101k0
The Lincoln Theatre GuildLincolntonNC$101k0
TAI CHI CHUAN CENTER OF MILWAUKEE INCMilwaukeeWI$101k3
LYLES STATION HISTORIC PRESERVATION CORPPrincetonIN$101k0
LAYALI ZAMAN ACADEMY ORCHESTRA INCHuntington BeachCA$101k0
GREENVILLE ARTS COUNCILGreenvilleMS$101k0
ROANOKE SCOTTISH RITERoanokeVA$101k0
LOVEVI INCWashingtonDC$101k1
New Hampshire Fiddle Ensemble IncNottinghamNH$101k4
WOMEN IN FILMATLANTAAtlantaGA$101k0
MADISON COUNTY VETERANS MEMORIAL FOUNDATION INCHuntsvilleAL$101k0
KAILUA FIREWORKSKailuaHI$101k0
TRI-CITY LATINO ASSOCIATIONColumbusGA$101k0
LATHROP ANTIQUE CAR TRACTOR AND ENGINE ASSNLathropMO$101k0
Fayetteville High School Choir Boosters IncFayettevilleAR$101k0
BALLET FOLKLORICO RITMO ALEGREMedfordOR$101k4
ANGIER MUSEUMAngierNC$101k0
ANGELES CHORALEPasadenaCA$101k0
EAST FISHKILL HISTORICAL SOCIETY INCHopewell JunctionNY$101k0
KIMAGE INCOld TappanNJ$101k0
SCHOOL HOUSE SYMPHONYCincinnatiOH$101k0
FRIENDS OF THE CEMETERY C/O VICKIE FLEMINGMedinaOH$101k0
ROCKY MOUNTAIN GOVERNMENTAL PURCHASING ASSOCIATIONColorado SpringsCO$101k0
DELPHOS SAINT JOHNS BAND BOOSTERSDelphosOH$101k0
The Jaquel Knight FoundationSherman OaksCA$101k0
THE JOHN ROSSELLI FOUNDATIONNew YorkNY$101k0
CHAMBER PLAYERS OF THE GREENWICH SYMPHONY INCGreenwichCT$101k0
PENNSYLVANIA VETERANS MUSEUMMediaPA$101k0
WORLD WAR II AIRBORNE COMMAND INCMcAlesterOK$101k0
APPLE CREEK HISTORICAL SOCIETYApple CreekOH$101k0
Music in the Schools FoundationPalo AltoCA$101k1
FORT FINDLAY PLAYHOUSE INCFindlayOH$101k0
KILGORE HISTORICAL PRESERVATION FOUNDATIONKilgoreTX$101k0
WORLD INTANGIBLE CULTURAL HERITAGENew YorkNY$101k0
PORTUGUESE HERITAGE SOCIETY OF CALIFORNIA INCSan JoseCA$101k0
LOS ANGELES TELUGU ASSOCIATION LATATorranceCA$101k0
AFRICAN AMERICAN FORUM INC CO JOHN E C/O JOHN E COLE IIILexingtonKY$101k0
MILLS COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETYGlenwoodIA$101k0
WILLIAMS STREET REPERTORYCrystal LakeIL$101k0
FRIENDS OF ARGENTINE TANGO INCNew YorkNY$100k2
SUMNER HIGH SCHOOL PERFORMING ARTS BOOSTERS INCRiverviewFL$100k2
FAIRMOUNT HISTORICAL MUSEUM INCFairmountIN$100k0
HELL'S HALF MILE EVENTSBay CityMI$100k0
VIRGINIA ASSOCIATION OF WORKFORCE DIRECTCharlotte Court HouseVA$100k0