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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 539 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
BERKELEY ARCHITECTURAL HERITAGE ASSOCIATIONBerkeleyCA$89k2
GOOD HART ARTIST RESIDENCY INCHarbor SpringsMI$89k1
DIVERSE EMERGING MUSIC ORGANIZATIONMinneapolisMN$89k1
HARRINGTON OPERA HOUSE SOCIETYHarringtonWA$89k0
THE SOAPBOX INDEPENDENT PUBLISHING CENTERPhiladelphiaPA$89k1
WELLSTON OHILLCO SOCIETYWellstonOH$89k0
SOUTHSIDE ART LEAGUE INCGreenwoodIN$89k0
PARA BAJITOS INCMiamiFL$89k2
Tet in SeattleSeattleWA$89k0
MORRIS COUNTY ART ASSOCIATIONMorristownNJ$89k0
DANCE PARENT BOOSTERSIrwinPA$89k0
ARTS COUNCIL OF POINTE COUPEENew RoadsLA$89k0
NORTHPORT COMMUNITY BANDEast NorthportNY$89k0
Contemporary Chorale IncRichardsonTX$89k0
TAU DANCE THEATERAieaHI$89k1
JAZZ PHILADELPHIAPhiladelphiaPA$89k0
Emotions Physical TheatreSuffernNY$89k1
DANVILLE CONCERT ASSOCIATION INCDanvilleVA$89k0
PRIDE FRISCOFriscoTX$89k0
ART TOOTHFort WorthTX$89k0
ASSOCIATION OF CALIFORNIA CAREGIVER RESOURCE CENTERTempletonCA$89k0
Kent Island Federation of Arts IncStevensvilleMD$89k0
CHILDREN S MUSEUM OF CENTRAL OREGONBendOR$89k1
REDLANDS EAST VALLEY HIGH SCHOOL WILDCAT BAND BOOSTERSMentoneCA$89k0
DARUMA NO GAKKOBerkeleyCA$89k0
ASSOCIAZIONE SACCHESI DAMERICA INCWhitestoneNY$89k0
Associated Friends of RooseveltSeattleWA$89k0
ACTORS NET INCMorrisvillePA$89k2
RAHAVARDLos AngelesCA$89k0
WESTLAKE HIGH SCHOOL CHORAL BOOSTERThousand OaksCA$89k0
HAWAII HISTORIC ARMS ASSOCIATIONHonoluluHI$89k0
MARK-N-SPARKS INCLos AngelesCA$89k0
THE FIFTH PRESS FOUNDATION INCMurrayUT$89k0
ARTS ACCELERATOR INCNorth MiamiFL$89k0
HUNTINGTON COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETYHuntingtonIN$89k0
Moclips by the Sea Historical SocietyMoclipsWA$89k1
GALLERY NIGHT PROVIDENCE INCProvidenceRI$89k0
FERNANDINA SONGWRITERS FOUNDATION INCFernandina BeachFL$89k0
EDWARD L & ELEANOR L SCHMIDT TRDallasTX$89k1
THURSDAY MUSICALSaint Louis ParkMN$89k0
GOLDEN VALLEY MUSIC SOCIETYTemeculaCA$89k0
BURTON K WHEELER CENTER INCBozemanMT$89k0
MOUNTAIN HOME ARTS COUNCIL INCMountain HomeID$89k1
EDEN PERFORMING ARTSEl PasoTX$89k0
Louisiana Veterans Museum FoundationBaton RougeLA$89k0
HEARTLAND MUSEUM OF MILITARY VEHICLLexingtonNE$89k0
COUNTYLINE COMMUNITYYucaipaCA$89k1
HADDOCK CENTERFort WorthTX$89k1
EDGE OF THE WILDERNESS DISCOVERY CENTERMarcellMN$89k0
THEATRE ODYSSEY INCSarasotaFL$88k0