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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 553 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
JENNY HOLZER FOUNDATIONNew YorkNY$84k0
OJAI PERFORMING ARTS THEATER FOUNDATIONOjaiCA$84k1
OREGON STATE HOSPITAL MUSEUM OF MENTAL HEALTHSalemOR$84k0
HISTORIC AIRCRAFT PRESERVATION SOCIETY INCMidlothianTX$84k0
BEYOND THE DANCE NETWORKSaint PaulMN$84k1
POOR RICHARDS PLAYERS INCHendersonNV$84k0
STAGE THE CHANGE INCDix HillsNY$84k1
Charleston Pride Festival IncNorth CharlestonSC$84k0
FIRELANDS HISTORICAL SOCIETYNorwalkOH$84k0
WEGO COMMUNITY THEATREWest ChicagoIL$84k0
ERITREAN COMMUNITY IN COLORADODenverCO$84k0
HBHS APA MMET GUILD INCHuntington BeachCA$84k0
PIGS DO FLY THEATER CORPHollywoodFL$84k0
MINIATURE MUSEUM OF ST LOUISSaint LouisMO$84k0
Elyria Arts CouncilElyriaOH$84k0
SYRACUSE SOUNDS OF MUSIC ASSOCIATION INCFayettevilleNY$84k0
Friends of Garfield OrchestraSeattleWA$84k0
MIDDLETON COMMUNITY ORCHESTRAMadisonWI$84k0
FBN PRODUCTIONS C/O ELLEN D SCHLAEFERChapinSC$84k0
WELLTONE NEW MUSIC INCNew YorkNY$84k0
Wartburg Community Symphony Association IncWaverlyIA$84k0
Window Seat MediaOlympiaWA$84k2
CONTEMPORARY ARTS INTERNATIONAL INCActonMA$84k0
The Art Studio IncBeaumontTX$84k3
Dade Association of Dance EducatorsMiamiFL$84k0
Theater Bus IncMadisonWI$84k1
Austin Tango SocietyAustinTX$84k0
ROY G BIV EMERGING ARTISTS INCColumbusOH$84k0
Rusting Man FoundationDutch HarborAK$84k0
CALIFORNIA MULTICULTURAL ARTS INSTITUTEEl CerritoCA$84k0
LEESBURG ART FESTIVAL INCLeesburgFL$84k1
Art & NewportMiddletownRI$84k0
FRIENDS OF ODELL HOUSE ROCHAMBEAU HEADQUARTERS INCHartsdaleNY$84k0
Vermillion Community Theatre IncVermillionSD$84k0
ROCK RISING INCAstoriaNY$84k1
ANACRUSIS PRODUCTIONS LTDAtlantaGA$84k0
VINEYARD HAVEN HARBOR CULTURAL DISTRICT INCVineyard HavenMA$84k2
THE MARFA STUDIO OF ARTS INCMarfaTX$84k0
NEW BEDFORD HISTORICAL SOCIETY INCNew BedfordMA$84k0
NOEMI PRESS INCTucsonAZ$84k0
TRASH THE RUNWAYBoulderCO$84k1
ONE REELSeattleWA$84k1
PHOTOGRAPHIC RESOURCE CENTER INCSomervilleMA$84k2
A S AND ELSIE HIRSHMAN CHARITABLE TRUST CO HOLLAND & KNIGHT LLPBostonMA$84k0
Monmouth Community PlayersMonmouthME$84k0
FRIENDS OF KA ULU LAUHALA O KONAKailua KonaHI$84k0
CAL CENTER PRESENTSReedsburgWI$84k0
THE CHIPPEWA VALLEY BAND BOOSTERSClinton TownshipMI$84k0
EARPLAYSan FranciscoCA$84k3
MARY EMMA FISHER TRUST XXXXX3001ChicagoIL$84k1