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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 655 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
iWeilan Cultural Forum IncorporatedEl ToroCA$53k0
SMITHVILLE COMMUNITY HISTORICAL SOCIETY INCSmithvilleOH$53k0
BLUE MING ASIAN ARTISTSSan DiegoCA$53k0
PRINCIPLE OF KNOWLEDGE REPRESENTATION AND REASONINGLas CrucesNM$53k0
BEETHOVEN FESTIVAL ORCHESTRA INCNew YorkNY$53k1
MORLEY COMMUNITY CENTER INCMorleyMI$53k0
HISTORIC SUMMIT AVENUESaint PaulMN$53k0
CHAMBER MUSIC LEHIGH VALLEYBethlehemPA$53k0
Friends of the Washington County Rural Heritage MuseumBoonsboroMD$53k0
Main Street Ballet Company IncWoodburyCT$53k0
TONALMOTION INCBrooklynNY$53k0
CHINA MUSIC FOUNDATIONAnn ArborMI$53k0
THE LONGYEAR GALLERY INCMargaretvilleNY$53k0
FISHKILL HISTORICAL SOCIETY INCFishkillNY$53k0
ESCONDIDO CHORAL ARTS FOUNDATIONBonsallCA$53k2
ST ANDREWS SOCIETY OF UPPER SOUTH CAROLINA HERITAGE FUNDGreenvilleSC$53k0
PATASPHEREDallasPA$53k0
RICHARD III SOCIETY INCNew LebanonNY$53k0
The First Act Childrens Community Theatre IncJax BchFL$53k1
STUDIO REVNew YorkNY$53k0
MUSEUM OF SOLAR ENERGYDuluthMN$53k0
OIL REGION BALLET COMPANYFranklinPA$53k0
National Woodie Club FoundationLathamNY$53k0
THE AUSTIN FINE ARTS ALLIANCE INCAustinTX$53k0
HALAU E HULALI MAI I KA LACaptain CookHI$53k0
MICHIGAN MUSIC EDUCATION ASSOCIATIO C/O CARIN MCEVOYEast LansingMI$53k1
Northern Virginia PlayersSpringfieldVA$53k1
EUGENE AIKIKAIEugeneOR$53k1
PRESERVATION GONZALES INCGonzalesTX$53k1
MARSHFIELD PERFORMING ARTS SOCIETY INCMarshfieldMO$53k0
THE BEAUFORT HISTORY MUSEUMBeaufortSC$53k0
ARTIST EXPOLanhamMD$53k0
BESI ASSOCIATION INCMaspethNY$53k0
DOWNERS GROVE NORTH FRIENDS OF FINE ARTSDowners GroveIL$53k0
RIVERFRONT ARTS DISTRICT INCDaytona BeachFL$53k0
PROMETHEUS SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA INCOaklandCA$53k0
NEW YIDDISH REPERTORY THEATERINCNew YorkNY$53k0
PERMIAN BASIN OPERAMidlandTX$53k0
HEARTLIGHT MINISTRIES INCSacramentoCA$53k0
1455 INCRestonVA$53k1
PIERCE-ARROW FOUNDATIONHickory CornersMI$53k0
ORMOND BEACH ARTS DISTRICT INCOrmond BeachFL$53k0
HERITAGE MUSEUM OF ROBERTS COUNTYSissetonSD$53k0
Lorenzo Malfatti Accademia Vocale Di Lucca IncMemphisTN$53k0
Jones River Village Historical SocietyKingstonMA$53k0
South Dakota Ballet CoBeresfordSD$53k1
MOONWATER DANCE PROJECT INCArlington HeightsIL$53k1
LAKE BONNEVILLE SYMPHONIC SOCIETYBrigham CityUT$53k8
Sera Jey Buddhist Cultural Center - MinnesotaCrystalMN$53k0
HEART OF TEXAS CONCERT BANDSan AntonioTX$53k2