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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 604 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
AMERICAN GUILD OF MUSICCincinnatiOH$68k0
PANKERKYRAIKOS ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA INCMontvilleNJ$68k0
PALOS VERDES IRANIAN CHILDREN AND YOUTH CULTURAL SOCIETYTorranceCA$68k0
VOX HUMANA INCWinston SalemNC$68k1
EVERETT PRIDEEverettWA$68k0
MARTIN LUTHER KING JR COMMITTEE OF SANTA BARBARASanta BarbaraCA$68k0
THE BENSON HISTORICAL MUSEUM INCHowardKS$68k0
EAST COUNTY YOUTH SYMPHONYEl CajonCA$68k2
EAST TEXAS SYMPHONIC BAND INCLongviewTX$68k0
SPRINGFED ARTSRoyal OakMI$68k1
KERN COUNTY WWII VETERANS MEMORIALBakersfieldCA$68k0
BEACHFRONT DANCE SCHOOL INCGaryIN$68k0
CONCERTS IN THE VILLAGEKinderhookNY$68k0
ASLETT CLEAN WORLD FOUNDATION A NONPROFIT CORPORATIONRivertonUT$68k0
Allegro Academy IncEastonMD$68k3
FRIDAY NIGHT DANCERS INCRockvilleMD$68k0
HOMESTEADER MUSEUM ASSOCIATION INCPowellWY$68k0
TEXAS SOCIETY FOR THE PRESERVATION OF ST JOSEPHS HALLE INCFredericksburgTX$68k0
AMERICAN MUSLIM ASSOCIATION OF NORTH AMERICAAlexandriaVA$68k0
MUSIC ACCORD INCNew YorkNY$68k1
SUKANYA BURMAN DANCE INCJamestownNY$67k0
South City Theatre IncPelhamAL$67k0
Granby Preservation Society IncGranbyMA$67k0
VIRGINIA FEDERATION OF MUSIC CLUBSWoodbridgeVA$67k2
PROJECT ESMEComstock ParkMI$67k0
A CHILD'S PRAYERCarltonWA$67k0
JIMMY JACK FOUNDATIONSnyderOK$67k0
EAGLE CONDOR COUNCIL INCAshevilleNC$67k0
SALEM JAZZ AND SOUL FESTIVAL INCSouth HamiltonMA$67k0
MONADNOCK CHORUSPeterboroughNH$67k1
Winterland Music Outreach Foundation IncJacksonvilleFL$67k1
MCKOY DANCE PROJECT INCBrooklynNY$67k1
PORTLAND CIVIC PLAYERSPortlandMI$67k0
BEAUTIFUL RACKET INCHudsonNY$67k0
JULY FOUR PLYMOUTH INCPlymouthMA$67k0
YELLOWSTONE BEER FESTCodyWY$67k0
FRIENDS OF THE OHIO THEATREMadisonIN$67k0
SEE THE VISION GRAB THE VISION INCNew YorkNY$67k0
Highway SanctuaryYucca ValleyCA$67k1
KANE AREA REVITALIZATION ENTERPRISEKanePA$67k0
Western New York Artists Group IncBuffaloNY$67k0
FORT MOSE HISTORICAL SOCIETY INCSaint AugustineFL$67k0
MINNESOTA WHEELS OF HONORCircle PinesMN$67k0
Stanley Museum IncKingfieldME$67k1
Rise Up Youth TheatreLancasterOH$67k0
CADENCE MUSIC & ARTS PROGRAMSJonestownPA$67k0
Starling Shakespeare Company IncColdwaterMI$67k0
HONK FESTIVAL WESTSeattleWA$67k1
WEST PASCO QUILTERS GUILD INCPort RicheyFL$67k0
VALLEY CONCERT CHORALELivermoreCA$67k0