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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 596 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
RICHMOND CONCERT POPS INCRichmondVA$70k0
Songbird Multimedia and Performing Arts Foundation IncorporatedLittle RockAR$70k0
FRIENDS OF JOHN H JOHNSON MUSEUMArkansas CityAR$70k0
INDIA ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHEAST TXBeaumontTX$70k0
CARITAS CHORALE LIMITEDKetchumID$70k0
ARTS FOUNDATION FEDERAL WAYFederal WayWA$70k0
STILTSVILLE TRUST INCCoral GablesFL$70k0
BALLET FOLKLORICO DE COLORESFlagstaffAZ$70k1
SALISBURY SINGERS INCWorcesterMA$70k1
St Lukes Steelband IncNew HavenCT$70k1
NEW CONDUCTORS ORCHESTRA INCNew YorkNY$70k0
SUDBURY SAVOYARDS INCSudburyMA$70k0
TRIFECTA DANCE COLLECTIVE NFPPark RidgeIL$70k0
ARTS HABITAT INCMontereyCA$70k0
Norway Maine Opera House CorpNorwayME$70k0
ART FARM IOWANorthwoodIA$70k0
BOISE GAY MENS CHORUS INCBoiseID$70k0
BLACK CHERRY INCBaltimoreMD$70k0
HISTORIC PORT ROYAL FOUNDATIONPort RoyalSC$70k0
BLSSD FUTURE INCGainesvilleFL$70k0
Greater Houston Business Procurement ForumHoustonTX$70k1
Shireinu Choir of Long Island IncGreat NeckNY$70k0
CHARLOTTE TELANGANA ASSOCIATION INCWaxhawNC$70k0
Friends of Johnston IncBethlehemPA$70k0
ChrisMastersDance IncBrooklynNY$70k0
VIRGINIA GRAND MILITARY BAND INCHaymarketVA$70k0
MT GRETNA SUMMER CONCERTS INCWaynePA$70k1
ARTS COUNCIL OF CHESTER COUNTYChesterSC$70k1
LEELANAU UNCAGED CORPORATIONNorthportMI$70k0
NORTH MYRTLE BEACH AREA HISTORICALNorth Myrtle BeachSC$70k1
White Box TheatrePhiladelphiaPA$70k1
SOCIETY FOR THE IMPROVEMENT OF PSYCJenisonMI$70k0
HAROLD B WETHERBEE TRUST UW FOR THRONATEESKABirminghamAL$70k1
GREENTOWN HISTORICAL SOCIETY INCGreentownIN$70k0
AMERICAN HOP MUSEUMToppenishWA$70k0
STOCKTON BLACK FAMILY DAY INCStocktonCA$70k0
ALLISON-ANTRIM MUSEUM INCGreencastlePA$70k0
SHUTTERBUGS 4 CHARITYSacoME$70k0
INDIAN HERITAGE AND CULTURAL ASSOCIATION A NJ NONPROFIT CORPORATIONMatawanNJ$70k0
CARSON MANSION HERITAGE FOUNDATIONEurekaCA$70k0
MARLBORO MORRIS ALE ASSOCIATIONWinooskiVT$70k0
FRIENDS OF CHELSEA SQUARE INCNew YorkNY$70k0
Huachuca Art Association IncSierra VistaAZ$70k0
OL FRONT PORCH MUSIC FESTIVALOrientalNC$70k0
SPRINGBORO ARTS COUNCIL INCSpringboroOH$70k0
WINCHESTER CHRISTIAN BALLET INCWinchesterKY$70k0
621 Gallery IncorporatedTallahasseeFL$70k0
SUNRISE THEATRE FOUNDATION INCFort PierceFL$70k0
SYMPHONY 21SalisburyMD$70k0
THE DONNA REED FOUNDATION FOR THE PERFORMING ARTSDenisonIA$70k0