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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 584 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
YPSILANTI SYMPHONY ORCHESTRAYpsilantiMI$74k6
NAVASOTA THEATRE ALLIANCENavasotaTX$74k0
CEDARTOWN CIVIC ARTS COMMISSIONCedartownGA$74k0
ASTORIA SCANDINAVIAN HERITAGE ASSNAstoriaOR$74k0
LAKE COUNTY QUILTERS GUILD INCTavaresFL$73k0
American Foundation for the Performing ArtsWestervilleOH$73k0
FIFE HISTORICAL SOCIETYFifeWA$73k0
GREATER PHILADELPHIA ASSOCIATION FOR CHINESE CULTUREHavertownPA$73k0
GLOBAL ORGANIZATION FOR ARTS LEADERKentWA$73k0
FOUNTAIN CITY BRASS BAND INCKansas CityMO$73k0
House of MexicoSan DiegoCA$73k0
Appalachian Auditorium at St JamesGreenevilleTN$73k0
SYRIAN LEBANESE AMERICAN CLUB OF ORLANDO INCOrlandoFL$73k0
NATIVE AMERICAN GUARDIANS ASSOCIATIONDevils LakeND$73k3
The Bingham Trust Charles ValierSt LouisMO$73k0
LEMARS COMMUNITY THEATRE INCLe MarsIA$73k0
SPECTRUM PRODUCTIONS INCFall RiverMA$73k0
AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT INCAtlantaGA$73k0
The Folkus Project IncorporatedSyracuseNY$73k0
CITIZENARTS Education CompanyNew CanaanCT$73k0
THE WRITER'S BLOCK INK INCNew LondonCT$73k0
SOUTH CALDWELL BAND BOOSTERS INCHudsonNC$73k0
APPELO ARCHIVES CENTERNaselleWA$73k1
Rhode Island Heritage Hall of FameEast ProvidenceRI$73k0
SCORPIUS DANCE THEATREPhoenixAZ$73k0
KUNDALINI FOUNDATION INCLos AngelesCA$73k0
Jeremy Winston Chorale InternationalBeavercreekOH$73k0
TAMIL SANGAM OF CENTRAL INDIANA INCCarmelIN$73k0
MCLOUGHLIN MEMORIAL ASSOCIATIONOregon CityOR$73k0
KENTON RIDGE NORTHRIDGE BAND PARENTS ASSOCIATIONSpringfieldOH$73k0
KAIROS DANCE THEATER INCBostonMA$73k1
Brentwood Veterans Memorial Building IncBrentwoodCA$73k0
EMMAUS HISTORICAL SOCIETYEmmausPA$73k0
Lumen Prize Foundation IncWilmingtonDE$73k0
THEATRE DOWNSTREAM INCNew CastleKY$73k0
BERKS COUNTY MONUMENT PRESERVATIONReadingPA$73k0
THE HEART OF JAZZ FOUNDATION A NEW JERSEY NON PROFIT CORPORATIONPhiladelphiaPA$73k0
FREISTADT ALTE KAMERADEN BAND LTDGermantownWI$73k0
EAU GALLIE ARTS DISTRICT MAIN STREET INCMelbourneFL$73k0
DITCH PROJECTSSpringfieldOR$73k1
Walnut Ridge Army Flying School Museum IncWalnut RidgeAR$73k0
THE NORTHERN STAR THEATRE COMPANYRice LakeWI$73k0
7th Street KidsHoquiamWA$73k0
Kansas Teachers Hall of Fame IncDodge CityKS$73k0
Warrior Films IncOaklandCA$73k1
BARTOW BAND BOOSTERS INCBartowFL$73k0
PROTESTANT REFORMED STUDENT ORCHESTRAHudsonvilleMI$73k2
SINO US FRIENDSHIP HOUSEMuscatineIA$73k0
K CUL FOUNDATIONKing Of PrussiaPA$73k0
SAN LUIS OBISPO WIND ORCHESTRA INCArroyo GrandeCA$73k2