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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 560 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
INDIANOLA MUSIC BOOSTERSIndianolaIA$81k0
PROJECT Y THEATRE INCNew YorkNY$81k1
BONITA SPRINGS CONCERT BAND INCBonita SpringsFL$81k2
Childrens Museum of Aroostook CountyPresque IsleME$81k3
PATTEN LUMBERMEN'S MUSEUM INCPattenME$81k1
UPWARD NOTES INCSarasotaFL$81k0
NORTH SEA MARITIME CENTER INCSouthamptonNY$81k0
TEXAS AIR AND SPACE MUSEUMINCAmarilloTX$81k0
PRAIRIE MUSIC ASSOCIATIONCedar RapidsIA$81k0
RHOMBUS - AMOS ENO GALLERY INCNew YorkNY$81k0
OUT OF THE BOX THEATRE COMPANY INCGoletaCA$81k2
WILLIAMSBURG HARMONY HILL ASSOCWilliamsburgOH$81k0
MT PLEASANT PERFORMING ARTS COMPANYMount PleasantSC$81k1
BENNETTS ADVENTURES AND EVENTS INCJoppaMD$81k0
Tonto Community Concert AssociationPaysonAZ$81k0
ACTING OUT THEATRE COBradleyIL$81k0
SALA DIAZ INCSan AntonioTX$81k0
Community Nutcracker IncJacksonvilleFL$81k0
SOUTHERLYLouisvilleKY$81k1
SUN VALLEY PLAYWRIGHTS RESIDENCY INCHaileyID$81k2
ORCHARD VALLEY CERAMIC ARTS GUILDSunnyvaleCA$81k0
ROOTS & HERITAGE FESTIVAL INCLexingtonKY$81k0
WABE FOUNDATION INC F/K/A PUBLIC BROADCASTING OF ATLANTA FOUNDATIAtlantaGA$81k2
Wyoming Cowboy Hall of FameSaratogaWY$81k0
POLISH AMERICAN CITIZENS SOCIETY OF ALLENTOWN PAAllentownPA$81k0
The Art Connection in Rhode IslandPawtucketRI$81k0
NAD MUSIC INSTITUTERentonWA$81k1
SAN JOSE CENTER FOR POETRY AND LITERATURESan JoseCA$81k0
KHMU NATIONAL FEDERATION INCAnaheimCA$81k0
WOMEN'S COMMITTEE FOR THE UMKC CONSERVATORYKansas CityMO$81k0
SANTA CRUZ DANCE GUILDSanta CruzCA$81k1
AMERICAN GUILD OF ORGANISTS BOSTON CHAPTERJamaica PlainMA$81k0
VISALIA PLAYERSVisaliaCA$81k0
UNITED LAKES & TRAIL RIDERS ASSOCIATIONDetroit LakesMN$81k1
BAYBERRY QUILTERS OF CAPE CODEast DennisMA$81k0
CHINESE COMMUNITY CENTER OF FLUSHING INCFlushingNY$81k0
SWEET ADELINES INTERNATIONAL MOTOR CITY BLEND CHORUSPlymouthMI$81k0
TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE AVIATION MUSEUM FOUNDATIONFairfieldCA$81k0
Amateur Golf Association - Coastal NJ LPGAOceanNJ$81k0
NATIONAL ROAD HERITAGE FOUNDATIONBoonsboroMD$81k0
THE BIG EASY IN BUFFALOBuffaloNY$81k1
Hip to Hip Theatre CompanyWoodsideNY$81k0
Nurturing Golden Heart Nurturing Golden HeartsBessemerAL$81k1
CHOSEN FEW ARTS COUNCILFlintMI$81k0
SALT AND LIGHT DANCE STUDIODuluthMN$81k1
Midwest Writers Workshop IncMuncieIN$81k1
Austin Area Quilt GuildAustinTX$81k0
Ankeny Area Historical SocietyAnkenyIA$81k0
NOLA TRBNew OrleansLA$81k0
Center For History & Archaeology of the Near EastCharlotteNC$81k0