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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 523 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
Desert Soul Media IncPhoenixAZ$95k0
ESAN NATIONAL CONGRESS USAGarlandTX$95k0
PHILHARMONIC SOCIETY OF BELLEVILLEBellevilleIL$95k0
WHEELES MUSEUMAlbuquerqueNM$95k0
International Wine & Food Society-La Jolla BranchSan DiegoCA$95k0
Asian American Society of Central VirginiaRichmondVA$95k0
EXALTED ARTS THEATRE COMPANYHoustonTX$95k5
MMC DANCE TEAM INCDowagiacMI$95k0
Casa de la Cultura Latino AmericanaNashvilleTN$95k0
DICKINSON FAMILY INC FOUNDATIONMarinetteWI$95k0
Dirt Dogs Theatre CompanyHoustonTX$95k0
SOMA 501 LITTLE ROCK INCLittle RockAR$95k1
STAGE AURORA THEATRICAL COMPANY INCJacksonvilleFL$95k1
HAGERSTOWN COMMUNITY CONCERT ASSN INCSharpsburgMD$95k0
ARTANGEL AMERICANew YorkNY$95k0
SAINT PAUL CENTRAL THEATER BOOSTER CLUBSt PaulMN$95k0
THE OPEN DOOR THEATER OF ACTON INCActonMA$95k0
WRANGLERS LOS ANGELES DANCE ASSOCIATIONNorth HillsCA$95k0
The Northwest Junior Pipe BandEdmondsWA$95k0
NG9-1-1 INSTITUTEWashingtonDC$95k0
THE BALLOON MUSEUM INCStatesvilleNC$95k1
THE NEW YORK SONGSPACE LTDNew YorkNY$95k0
PACIFIC CHOIRSan RamonCA$95k0
RIVERSONG MUSIC FESTIVALHutchinsonMN$95k0
VIETNAM SOCIETYFalls ChurchVA$95k0
ALLEN COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY INCIolaKS$95k0
Coastal Bend Gujarati Samaj IncPortlandTX$95k0
FRIENDS OF NATURAL HISTORY FOUNDATIONResearch Triangle ParkNC$95k0
KOKOMO CIVIC THEATRE INCKokomoIN$95k1
Upper Darby Band Orchestra Parents IncDrexel HillPA$95k0
ASSOCIATION OF OUT SURGEONS AND ALLIESWest HartfordCT$95k0
BARRY LOPEZ FOUNDATION FOR ART & ENVIRONMENTSanta FeNM$95k1
BLACKSBURG CHINESE SCHOOL INCBlacksburgVA$95k1
Gift of JazzDenverCO$95k4
TEXAS MILITARY MUSEUMBlossomTX$95k0
ENDSTATION THEATRE COMPANYLynchburgVA$95k0
GILA MIMBRES COMMUNITY RADIOSilver CityNM$95k0
PLYMOUTH HISTORICAL SOCIETY INCPlymouthWI$95k0
UPPER PENINSULA ARTS AND CULTURE ALLIANCEMacKinac IslandMI$95k2
SOMETHING QUEER MUSIC AND ARTS COLLECTIVESan JoseCA$95k0
BUSHY RUN BATTLEFIELD HERITAGE SOCIETY INCHarrison CityPA$95k0
THE CONSORTIUM MMTMemphisTN$95k0
Tree of Life ChariitesBellinghamWA$95k0
DOWNTOWN DREAM MACHINE D/B/A THEATREWORKSMemphisTN$95k0
ARTISTIC ROOTS INCPlymouthNH$95k0
REE & JUN KANEKO FOUNDATION ATTN SUSAN SCHONLAUOmahaNE$95k0
INTERNATIONAL POLKA ASSOCIATIONChicagoIL$95k0
ALPV INCWilliamsburgVA$95k0
VIRGINIA NATIONAL GUARD HISTORICAL SOCIETY INCRichmondVA$95k0
Mainspring Narrative Films IncLitchfieldCT$95k0