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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 605 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
AFRICAN AMERICAN NATIONAL HERITAGE SOCIETYBryanTX$67k0
WOODSHILL INCSauquoitNY$67k0
MIND TO MOVE INCBrooklynNY$67k0
UNITING BROWN BALLERS FOUNDATIONWilmingtonDE$67k0
OSHKOSH YOUTH SYMPHONYOshkoshWI$67k1
VIVIAN G PRINS FOUNDATIONNew YorkNY$67k0
ARTISTS GROUP OF CHARLESTOWN INCCharlestownMA$67k0
FOOTLIGHT PLAYERSCoshoctonOH$67k0
BACH-MILLENNIUM MUSICSanta ClaraCA$67k0
GARIFUNA INTERNATIONAL INDIGENOUS FILM FESTIVALTopangaCA$67k0
SACRAMENTO TAMIL MANDRUMElk GroveCA$67k0
PEACEPATHWAYSIndependenceMO$67k1
SOUTH GWINNETT BAND ASSOCIATION INCSnellvilleGA$67k0
UPSCULPT INCGreenportNY$67k0
CHATHAM ARCH NEIGHBORHOOD FOUNDATIONIndianapolisIN$67k0
SAATHEdinaMN$67k1
TIPP CITY AREA ARTS COUNCIL INCTipp CityOH$67k2
THE MODEL RAILROAD CLUB INCUnionNJ$67k0
Art Society at Loblolly AcresWoodsideDE$67k0
GULLIVER HISTORICAL SOCIETYGulliverMI$67k0
HARRISBURG GUJARATI ASSOCIATIONHummelstownPA$67k0
TheArtBlog IncPhiladelphiaPA$67k0
KXCJ-LPCave JunctionOR$67k1
TINY PORCH CONCERTS INCVenturaCA$67k0
JOY OF DRAWING INCMenlo ParkCA$67k1
VENTURA COUNTY SCIENCE CENTERSanta PaulaCA$67k0
WEST VIRGINIA MEMORIAL DAY INCGraftonWV$67k0
CALIFORNIA AREA HISTORICAL SOCIETYCaliforniaPA$67k0
COLORADO DANCE COLLECTIVE ADULT REPERTOIRE COMPANYGreeleyCO$67k0
AMERICAN FRIENDS OF CAPODIMONTE MUSOakbrook TerraceIL$67k0
SCITUATE ARTS ASSOCIATION INCScituateMA$67k0
ROBERT CHRISMAN FOUNDATIONSeattleWA$67k0
Standing Rock Cultural ArtsKentOH$67k0
IRISH DANCE ACADEMY OF ALASKAAnchorageAK$67k1
PALOUSE CHORAL SOCIETY INCPullmanWA$67k1
UPR Foundation IncWest LafayetteIN$67k0
Pictures on SilenceWashingtonDC$67k1
CHEEKTOWAGA HISTORICAL ASSN INCCheektowagaNY$67k0
OKLAHOMA CITY PHILHARMONIC FOUNDATION INCOklahoma CityOK$67k0
EDUCATIONAL THEATER OF NEW YORK Inc ETNYNew YorkNY$67k2
PHILLIPSBURG WESTERN HERITAGE FOUNDATIONPhillipbsurgKS$67k0
CLEWISTON PERFORMING ARTS CENTER INCClewistonFL$67k0
GRIPPO STAGE COMPANY INCPark RidgeIL$67k1
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA BRASS CONSORTIUMLong BeachCA$67k4
ZEN AND NOW CLAY STUDIO COOPERATIVE INCTuckerGA$67k0
CHINESE CULTURAL SOCIETY OF STOCKTONStocktonCA$67k0
ALPHA & OMEGA PROJECT INCMonroe TownshipNJ$67k0
THE WASHINGTON CHAMBER ORCHESTRA INCOxfordMD$67k0
Encore EncoreFort CollinsCO$67k0
CONSUMING FIRE SCHOOL OF DANCE AND FITNESS CENTER INCChadronNE$67k1