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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 589 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
SCARLET 1869 HOUSINGRenoNV$72k0
KEWASKUM REMEMBERS 911 INCKewaskumWI$72k0
CHANGING FACES THEATER COMPANYLodiCA$72k0
Casa De La Cultura Hispana De LexingtonLexingtonKY$72k0
OCEAN HILLS SOCIETY FOR THE PERFORMING ARTSOceansideCA$72k0
EAST COUNTY MEDIALa MesaCA$72k0
Pierrot Chamber Music Festival IncNew YorkNY$72k0
HISTORIC SEELYE MANSION FOUNDATIONAbileneKS$72k0
Art CorpsSan DiegoCA$72k1
MIDDLETOWN HISTORICAL SOCIETYMiddletownDE$72k0
HeartsyPhoenixAZ$72k1
Arctic Exposure Traditional GamesBarrowAK$72k0
META MESH WIRELESS COMMUNITIES D/B/A COMMUNITY INTERNET SOLUTIONPittsburghPA$72k1
FRIENDS OF THE COMMUNITY GROWING CENTER INCSomervilleMA$72k0
FAMILY HARMONY INCGrand RapidsMI$72k1
Media Ave StudiosAnaheimCA$72k0
Miracle Childrens FoundationDel MarCA$72k0
HOLCOMBE JIMISON FARMSTEAD INCLambertvilleNJ$72k0
Crawford County Heritage FoundationRobinsonIL$72k0
Red River Railroad MuseumDenisonTX$72k0
SOUTH BAY GUITAR SOCIETY OF SAN JOSECupertinoCA$72k0
Folk Heritage Association of Macon CountyFranklinNC$72k0
CLASS ACT DANCE TROUPE INCWarsawIN$72k3
The Gilbert Baker Foundation LtdNew YorkNY$72k0
SOUTHERN ASSOCIATION OF DANCE MASTERS INCBartlettTN$72k0
Live Performing Arts AcademyFolsomCA$72k0
THE BREEMA CENTEROaklandCA$72k0
Borax Visitor Center FoundationBoronCA$72k0
MILLENNIAL CREEKRISE FILMSNew BraunfelsTX$72k0
WOMEN SHOAH-JEWISH PLACEMAKINGGreensboroNC$72k1
ARTS COUNCIL OF CROCKETTHallsTN$72k0
THE WISTARIAHURST FOUNDATION INCHolyokeMA$72k0
Sargam Group of SocalYorba LindaCA$72k0
LOS ANGELES SYMPHONIC WINDSCalabasasCA$72k1
Jazz Center of BellinghamBellinghamWA$72k0
DELTA INDEPENDENCE DAY FOUNDATIONWestlake VillageCA$72k0
South Charlotte Ballet FoundationCharlotteNC$72k0
LC WINDMILL INCLittle ChuteWI$72k1
NORTH AMERICAN VICTORIAN STUDIES ASAltoonaPA$72k0
Soundtrack Community Development & Talent Enhancement IncChicagoIL$72k0
GROWTHWORKS INCVictorNY$72k0
Art Yard Bklyn Inc C/O Dennis BuonaguraNew YorkNY$72k1
AVERASBORO BATTLEFIELD COMMISSIONDunnNC$72k0
MARYSVILLE CHINESE COMMUNITYMarysvilleCA$72k0
Anaadi Global IncSan RamonCA$72k0
HERITAGE ASSOCIATION OF SAN MARCOSSan MarcosTX$72k0
QUILTERS OF SOUTH CAROLINA INCColumbiaSC$72k0
NEBRASKA STATE QUILT GUILD C/O SUE BROWNHastingsNE$72k0
CHAMBER MUSIC - CALIN LUPANU AND MONICA BOBOCCharlotteNC$72k0
MARTIN LUTHER KING JR COMMUNITY CHOIR SAN DIEGOSan DiegoCA$72k0