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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 600 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
SOUTHERN SEA DRAGON AND LION DANCEEscondidoCA$69k0
ANACORTES ARTS FOUNDATIONAnacortesWA$69k0
BULGARIAN LANGUAGE SCHOOL JOHN ATANASOFFVernon HillsIL$69k0
CASCADIA CONCERT OPERAAstoriaOR$69k0
BELOIT JANESVILLE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA INCBeloitWI$69k0
UNITY GOSPEL CHOIR INTERNATIONALProvoUT$69k0
CENTERVILLE CONCERT ASSOCIATIONCentervilleIA$69k0
LANGHORNE PLAYERS INCNewtownPA$69k0
THE LUCAS COUNTY-MAUMEE VALLEY HISTORICAL SOCIETYMaumeeOH$69k1
PORTOBELLO CULTURAL LIFE & ARTS CENTER INCBeaver FallsPA$69k0
MILLIKEN MUSEUM SOCIETYLos BanosCA$69k0
THE KULSHAN CHORUSBellinghamWA$69k1
TEXAS BACH FESTIVAL INCGeorgetownTX$69k0
New Salem Community ReconciliationTacomaWA$69k0
HOOFPRINTS OF THE PASTKayceeWY$69k1
DINGBAT THEATRE PROJECT INCSarasotaFL$69k0
HINDU PRAYER AND CULTURAL CENTERKentWA$69k0
THE WICHITA COMMUNITY THEATRE INCWichitaKS$69k0
WOODLANDS SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA A NON-PROFIT CORPORATIONThe WoodlandsTX$69k1
PUBLIC POETRYHoustonTX$69k0
Igbo Community Association of Arizona IncGlendaleAZ$69k0
CONTEMPORATI INCSanta RosaCA$69k0
OHIO BASKETBALL MUSEUM FOUNDATIONColumbusOH$69k1
CENTER FOR CULTURAL PRESERVATION INCFlat RockNC$69k1
MID COLUMBIA COMMUNITY CONCERT ASSOCIATIONThe DallesOR$69k0
CONSTELLATIONS CHAMBER CONCERTSPotomacMD$69k1
SAEGERTOWN HERITAGE SOCIETYSaegertownPA$69k0
Utah Cultural AllianceSalt Lake CityUT$69k0
ARTSIE INCEvanstonIL$69k1
CHALLENGE 22 INCORPORATEDWinter GardenFL$69k0
THE ADDISON TIMES INCShelbyvilleIN$69k0
LITTLE NECK DOUGLASTON MEMORIAL DAY PARADE ASSOCIATION INCLittle NeckNY$69k0
TRIANGLE SHIRTWAIST FACTORY FIRE MEMORIAL INCWhite PlainsNY$69k0
MOVIKARMALos AngelesCA$69k0
WOMEN FOR HUMANITYTemple CityCA$69k0
FRESH SQUEEZED OPERA COMPANY INCNew YorkNY$69k0
AMERICAN FRIENDS OF WIGMORE HALL INCNew YorkNY$69k0
TRI-CITY QUILTERSRichlandWA$69k0
FRIENDS OF THE GARDEN CITY HISTORICAL MUSEUMGarden CityMI$69k0
LISTENING FOR A CHANGESanta RosaCA$69k1
SLIDELL HISTORICAL ANTIQUE ASSNSlidellLA$68k0
World Swing Dance Council IncChicagoIL$68k0
Chinese-American Assoc of Chino HillsChinoCA$68k0
PENNSYLVANIA ACADEMY OF BALLET SOCIETY INCNarberthPA$68k0
SMALL WONDERS PUPPET THEATERAustinTX$68k1
PORTLAND TANGO ASSOCIATION INCPortlandOR$68k0
RTA BROADCASTINGArtesiaCA$68k0
BRAIN AND BODY MUSIC STUDIOOrangeCA$68k1
LAKE ERIE HERITAGE FOUNDATION INCSolonOH$68k0
Morton Theatre CorporationAthensGA$68k0