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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 568 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
WINDHAM TEXTILE AND HISTORY MUSEUM INCWillimanticCT$79k0
WOMENS DRUM CENTERSt PaulMN$79k0
NORTH CAROLINA ASSOCIATION OFLexingtonNC$79k0
WARREN SYMPHONY SOC INC-WARREN PHILHARMONIC ORCHESWarrenOH$79k0
CHILDREN'S HOME OF HAITI INCFranksvilleWI$79k0
CIRCUS HISTORICAL SOCIETY INCColumbusOH$79k0
Round-up Hall of Fame AssociationPendletonOR$79k0
MIDWEST MODERN LANGUAGE ASSOCIATIONChicagoIL$79k1
NEBRASKA NATIONAL GUARD HISTORICAL SOCIETY INCSewardNE$79k0
Willapa Bay AiROystervilleWA$79k0
PENINSULA MUSICAL ARTS ASSOCIATIONFoster CityCA$79k0
BAKERSFIELD FOUNDATIONBakersfieldCA$79k0
NEWTON IRRV TR FBO GULF COAST HERITAGE ASSOCIATIONSarasotaFL$79k0
SHELBURNE COMMUNITY SCHOOL COUNCILRoxburyMA$79k0
ONE LAWNDALE ARTS & ACTIVISM INCUBATORChicagoIL$79k1
SWEET ADELINES INTERNATIONAL - SPIRIT OF SYRACUSEBaldwinsvilleNY$79k0
The Venice Chorale IncVeniceFL$79k0
WORLD VOICES HOUSTONHoustonTX$79k3
EAST HOUSE ART GALLERY INCRed OakIA$79k0
BATTLE OF THE BULGE ASSOCIATION INCMechanicsvilleVA$79k0
MIDDLESEX COUNTY MUSEUM AND HISTORICAL SOCIETYSaludaVA$79k1
CZECH AND SLOVAK ASSOCIATION INCBostonMA$79k0
KRASL ART CENTER CHARITABLE TRUST C/O 1ST SOURCE BANKSaint JosephMI$79k1
COLUMBUS CULTURAL LEADERSHIP CONSORTIUMColumbusOH$79k0
CREATING COMMUNITY MONTANABillingsMT$78k0
WORLD WAR II HISTORY PROJECTEncinitasCA$78k0
Hamilton County Theatre Guild IncNoblesvilleIN$78k0
WESTSIDE COMMUNITY ASSOCIATIONBartlesvilleOK$78k0
NA MEA KUPONO LEARNING CENTERWaialuaHI$78k0
MKE BLACK INCMilwaukeeWI$78k1
Encore Vocal Ensemble of San DiegoSan DiegoCA$78k0
GENESIUS THEATRE FOUNDATIONDavenportIA$78k2
SON OF SEMELE ENSEMBLE INCLos AngelesCA$78k0
DUPAGE GRAUE MILL FOUNDATIONClarendon HillsIL$78k0
OCEAN SPRINGS EDUCATION FOUNDATIONOcean SpringsMS$78k0
NATIONAL DANCE WEEK FOUNDATIONOcalaFL$78k1
Treasure Coast Youth Symphony IncStuartFL$78k0
BOSTON BHANGRA INCBrooklineMA$78k0
Collinsville Historical Association IncCollinsvilleAL$78k0
HISTORY CENTER ON MAIN STREETMansfieldPA$78k0
FARPOINT FOUNDATIONWaldorfMD$78k0
THE LAKE ARROWHEAD CLASSICAL BALLETLake ArrowheadCA$78k0
THE HENRY NEHRLING SOCIETY INCGothaFL$78k0
Bambili Cultural and Development AssociationDumfriesVA$78k0
GIFTED HANDSNew YorkNY$78k0
KNIGHTS OF ST PATRICK INCNew HavenCT$78k0
MAKANDA PROJECT ORGANIZATION INCMiltonMA$78k1
BECKLEY ARTISTIC ENDEAVORS INCBeckleyWV$78k0
OLYMPIA PEACE CHOIROlympiaWA$78k0
WEST TEXAS TRIBUNEAbileneTX$78k0