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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 658 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
TINY TIM AND FRIENDS INCHopkinsMN$52k0
BEACON HILL CIRCLE FOR CHARITY INCBostonMA$52k0
Broadway ExperienceUplandCA$52k0
LEXINGTON POPS CHORUSLexingtonMA$52k0
DANCE MASTERS PACIFIC COASTPort HuenemeCA$52k0
North Bay Italian Cultural FoundationSanta RosaCA$52k0
RUSSIAN EDUCATIONAL CENTER OF MINNEFarmingtonMN$52k0
LAKE PLACID OLYMPIC MUSEUMLake PlacidNY$52k0
LANDER ART CENTERLanderWY$52k0
WEISENBERGLOWHILL TOWNSHIP HISTORICAL SOCIETY INCNew TripoliPA$52k0
ONONDAGA COUNTY MUSIC EDUCATORSLa FayetteNY$52k1
Vancouver Dance TheatreVancouverWA$52k4
HELENA MUSEUM OF PHILLIPS COUNTY INCHelenaAR$52k0
CENTRAL VALLEY GUJARATI COMMUNITY ASSOCIATIONMountain HouseCA$52k0
Cuthbertson High Theater BoostersWaxhawNC$52k0
PANNA MARIA HISTORICAL SOCIETYPanna MariaTX$52k0
MVA INCBroken ArrowOK$52k0
DMA-EVENTS INCTullahomaTN$52k3
NADANTA INCFarmington HillsMI$52k0
Ensemble Music OregonPortlandOR$52k3
MORGANTOWN ART ASSOCIATION INCMorgantownWV$52k0
MUSIC ON THE DELAWARE INCWaltonNY$52k0
lemon-aide corporationMashpeeMA$52k0
PHOTOJOURNALISM ARCHIVEWashingtonDC$52k1
HUACHUCA MUSEUM SOCIETYSierra VistaAZ$52k0
SINFONIA SPIRITUOSA INCSacramentoCA$52k0
APPNA INSTITUTE OF INNOVATION AND RESEARCHDentonTX$52k0
FRIENDS OF THE TEMPLE OF RAMESSES II AT ABYDOS INCPelhamNY$52k0
WORDDANCETHEATRE INCBethesdaMD$52k1
FULLERTON CIVIC LIGHT OPERAFullertonCA$52k0
Wander Community Arts IncDu QuoinIL$52k0
ALFRESCO PRODUCTIONS INCGranite CityIL$52k0
CAMBRIA SCARECROW FESTIVAL INCCambriaCA$52k0
Lincolnville Preservation & Historical Society IncSummervilleSC$52k0
BARNSTABLE HISTORICAL SOCIETYBarnstableMA$52k0
Gilbert Town FiddlersMesaAZ$52k0
THE FRONTENAC HISTORICAL SOCIETY & MUSEUMUnion SpringsNY$52k0
DESCOLONIZARTE TEATRO INCOrlandoFL$52k1
WEST SUBURBAN IRISHNapervilleIL$52k0
Friends of Millstone Township Historic Registered PropertiesMillstone TownshipNJ$52k0
TEMPLE OF MUSICSammamishWA$52k0
TOWNE PLAYERS OF GARNER INCGarnerNC$52k4
Alliance of Asian American Friends IncFlushingNY$52k0
COLORADO CHAMBER PLAYERS INCORPORATEDDenverCO$52k0
FOREST CITY THRESHERS ASSOCIATIONLitchfieldMN$52k0
PUBLIC GALLERY OF CARRBORO INCCarrboroNC$52k0
VALLEY PLACE ARTS COLLABORATIVE INCWashingtonDC$52k0
MANHEIM CENTRAL BAND BOOSTERSManheimPA$52k0
MONTGOMERY CHAMBER MUSIC ORGANIZATION INCMontgomeryAL$52k0
AURORA MINISTRIESShermanTX$52k0