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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 534 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
REVOLUTION OF TENDERNESSSteubenvilleOH$91k0
DURANGO MELTDOWNDurangoCO$91k0
OUT LOUD INCAnn ArborMI$91k0
FORKS TIMBER MUSEUMForksWA$91k0
USE YOUR EARS INCColumbusOH$91k1
PETERSBURG AREA ART LEAGUEPetersburgVA$91k0
ASHLAND POAGE LANDING DAYS FESTIVALAshlandKY$91k0
DAN QUAYLE COMMEMORATIVE FOUNDATIONHuntingtonIN$91k1
NATIONAL SOCIETY OF THE DAUGHTERS OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTIONBella VistaAR$91k0
FotolanthropyDallasTX$91k3
MUSICAL STAGES INCLinthicumMD$91k5
FREESTYLE PERCUSSION FOUNDATION INCCenter PointAL$91k0
Distinguished Flying Cross SocietySan DiegoCA$91k0
LIONESS CLUB LIONESS CLUB OF MOSES LAKEMoses LakeWA$91k0
CREDO CHOIRDallasTX$91k0
HAYWARD AREA FORUM OF THE ARTS Sun GalleryHaywardCA$91k0
HENDERSON CIVIC THEATRE INCHendersonTX$91k0
CICERONIAN SOCIETY FOUNDATIONHollandMI$91k1
ARANSAS PASS PANTHER BAND BOOSTER CAransas PassTX$91k0
COLONIAL THEATER INCAugustaME$91k1
The Utopian Theatre AsylumChicagoIL$91k3
Grand Valley Creative AllianceGrand JunctionCO$91k0
MANCHESTER MAKERSPACEManchesterNH$91k0
TRANSART AND CULTURAL SERVICES INCWest ParkNY$91k0
FANNIE LOU HAMER INSTITUTE OF ADVOCACY & SOCIAL ACTIONWendellNC$91k1
FARGO-MOORHEAD CHORAL ARTISTSMoorheadMN$90k3
CARROLL CHILDRENS MUSEUMCarrollIA$90k0
EAST COBB THEATRICAL INCMariettaGA$90k0
VIVA PERFORMING ARTS INCDixonIL$90k1
PRIME PRODUCTIONSSt Louis ParkMN$90k2
AFRICAN AMERICAN HERITAGE MUSEUM OF SOUTHERN NEW JERSEYAtlantic CityNJ$90k0
AMERICAN ORCHESTRA EUROPA FOUNDATION INCBrooklynNY$90k0
APPLES AND ORANGES ARTS INCIrvineCA$90k2
HALLET OAK FOUNDATION INCHallettsvilleTX$90k0
HERMAN LEVERN JONES THEATRESOUTH INCSaint LouisMO$90k0
WEST BRANCH CHORAL & THEATER BOOSTER CLUB INCDamascusOH$90k0
NORTHERN STAR QUILTERS GUILD LTDSomersNY$90k0
Northwest Opera in Schools EtceteraSeattleWA$90k3
LS Theatre ProductionsColleyvilleTX$90k0
SIGMA CHI BUILDING FOUNDATIONMissoulaMT$90k0
Belle VociAspinwallPA$90k0
Fair Lawn Friends Of Music AssociationFair LawnNJ$90k0
CONNECTICUT THEATER COMPANY INCNew BritainCT$90k0
PCEP DANCE TEAMLivoniaMI$90k0
SALEM PHILHARMONIA ORCHESTRASalemOR$90k2
CRISFIELD HERITAGE FOUNDATION INCCrisfieldMD$90k0
PITTSTON FESTIVAL ASSOCIATIONPittstonPA$90k0
AUSTIN AREA HERITAGE COUNCILAustinTX$90k0
CURTAIN CALL PERFORMING COMPANY INCIndianapolisIN$90k0
ARIA SCHOOL OF MUSIC & ART A 501 (C) (3) CORPORATIONRenoNV$90k0