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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 623 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
Oak Lawn Band IncDallasTX$62k0
THE GREATER ORANGE COMMUNITY ARTS THEATRE FOUNDATIONOrangeCA$62k0
Union County PlaymakersMonroeNC$62k0
MIAMI NEWS TRUST IncMiamiFL$62k0
COLORADO AUTHORS HALL OF FAMEAuroraCO$62k0
HAWAII JAPANESE CENTERHiloHI$62k2
LIEDERKRANZ DANCERS AND KULTURE GRUPPEMansfieldOH$62k0
PINAL COUNTY VETERANS MEMORIAL FOUNDATIONCasa GrandeAZ$62k0
CHARLOTTE STREET ART COLLABORATIVEGastoniaNC$62k0
CHORALSONG OF COLORADO SPRINGSColorado SpringsCO$62k1
R3 COMMUNITY THEATREIdaho FallsID$62k1
Borrego Springs Music Festival CorpBorrego SpringsCA$62k0
Pennsylvania Yankee Theatre Company IncPenn YanNY$62k0
KADEL BUTLER PRESERVATION FUNDAmityAR$62k0
KOISTINEN MUSIC & ARTS STUDIOSugar LandTX$62k1
NORTHPORT HISTORICAL SOCIETYNorthportWA$62k0
THE SYMPHONY OF RUTHERFORD COUNTYForest CityNC$62k0
Centre Park Historic District IncReadingPA$62k1
TUCSON NURSES WEEK FOUNDATIONTucsonAZ$62k0
ISM IncNew YorkNY$62k0
SPREAD THE TUNES INCSpearfishSD$62k0
THE WRITERS LAB INC C/O ELIZABETH KAIDENNew YorkNY$62k2
SANTA FE AREA HISTORICAL FOUNDATION INCSanta FeTX$62k0
Food is Love Production Company IncAltonIL$62k0
Grimmer Band BoostersScherervilleIN$62k0
North Caucasus Association of AmericaWayneNJ$62k0
Black Dirt TheaterHastingsMN$62k0
FRANCIS HOWELL CENTRAL SENSATIONSCottlevilleMO$62k0
DREAM FOUNDRYChicagoIL$62k0
ARTS WITH OTHERSLincolnNE$62k1
CINE QUA NON INCPurchaseNY$62k0
Planet ImprovCharlotteNC$62k0
TI PIACE ITALIAN AMERICAN PRESENTATIONS INCNew YorkNY$62k0
THE BOYERTOWN AREA SCHOOLS MUSIC LEAGUEBoyertownPA$62k0
ASK A MUSLIMColumbusOH$62k0
Paula Knickerbocker Foundation Inc c/o Idaho Trust Bank benjamin prohaskaCoeur DaleneID$62k1
ALICE S DEGN HOPE LODGE FDNSaint LouisMO$62k1
Sikeston Little Theatre IncSikestonMO$62k0
GRAND IGLOO FOUNDATION INCFairbanksAK$62k0
OVATION THEATRE INCBradentonFL$62k1
LGBT LEGACY PROJECTClevelandOH$62k0
GUJARATI SAMAJ OF GATORLAND INCGainesvilleFL$62k0
JBN INCNaplesNC$62k2
CAROLINA STRAWBERRY FESTIVAL INCWallaceNC$62k0
EXPLORE FOREST CITYForest CityNC$62k0
E3 LEADERSHIP GROUPLees SummitMO$62k0
Belfast Historical Society and MuseumBelfastME$62k0
INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC PATRONS OF CUYAHOGA FALLSCuyahoga FallsOH$62k0
SEVEN BRIDGES FOUNDATION INCGreenwichCT$62k1
THE OLD FIRST HISTORIC TRUST INCElizabethNJ$62k0