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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 668 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
LAKESHORE VISUAL ARTS COLLECTIVE INCGrand HavenMI$49k0
THE NEW YORK CLASSICAL CLUB INCNew YorkNY$49k0
Chetco Pelican Players IncBrookingsOR$49k0
VOVINAM VIET-VO-DAO OF AMERICASan JoseCA$49k0
CALIFORNIA CARVERS GUILDVenturaCA$49k0
CRITTENDEN COUNTY TOMORROW INCMarionKY$49k0
NATIONAL FINNISH AMERICAN FESTIVAL INCHurleyWI$49k0
SINGH CARES FOUNDATION INCScarsdaleNY$49k0
SABHA INCIrvineCA$49k0
THE EDDY HOMESTEAD ASSN INCMiddleboroMA$49k0
Problem Library IncSan FranciscoCA$49k0
MID EASTERN DANCE EXCHANGEMiamiFL$49k1
Maryland Women's Heritage Center & Museum IncColumbiaMD$49k1
STAR CHINESE LANGUAGE SCHOOLPawtucketRI$49k0
CYBERPOINTERS ANGWilliamsvilleNY$49k0
MUSIC AT PENN ALPS INCGrantsvilleMD$49k0
Lake Tahoes Shining StarsSouth Lake TahoeCA$49k0
RINCE NA TIARNA ASSOCIATION INCBuffaloNY$49k0
LAO GLOBAL HERITAGE ALLIANCEManassasVA$49k0
LAKES REGION PUBLIC ACCESS TV INCLaconiaNH$49k0
HILL-STEAD MUSEUM BOARD OF GOVERNORS INCFarmingtonCT$49k2
RENAISSANCE NOW THEATRE & FILMVineyardUT$49k0
Chamber Music Corvallis IncCorvallisOR$49k0
MODERN GREEK STUDIES FOUNDATIONSan FranciscoCA$49k0
Potomac Valley Watercolorists IncAlexandriaVA$49k0
GRACISM GLOBAL INCColumbiaMD$49k0
FISHTANK THEATRE INCKansas CityMO$49k0
Capital Wind Symphony IncOaktonVA$49k0
Historic Florissant IncFlorissantMO$49k0
CAROLINA'S CARIBBEAN CULTURE FESTIVALColumbiaSC$49k0
Seattle Gilbert & Sullivan Crown Hill Center G & S SuiteSeattleWA$49k0
Reddick Preservation and Growth FoundationReddickFL$49k0
DURHAM CHILDRENS CHOIR INCDurhamNC$49k0
EUROPEAN RURAL HERITAGE INSTITUTEClermontIA$49k0
Pleasant Music BoostersMarionOH$49k0
CHARLES E GAGNON MUSEUM AND SCULPTURE GARDEN INCRochesterMN$49k0
Group BR LimitedNew YorkNY$49k2
CHICAGO JAPANESE CLUBArlington HeightsIL$49k0
TRACY THEATER ARTS COLLABORATIVETracyCA$49k0
EMERSON ARTS AND EDUCATION FOUNDATION PACELos AngelesCA$49k0
LANDMARK FOR ALL GENERATIONS INCOkmulgeeOK$49k0
IPSWICH MUSIC ART & DRAMA ASSOCIATION INCIpswichMA$49k0
KURDISH CULTURAL CENTER OF ILLINOISChicagoIL$49k0
SIKESTON CULTURAL DEVSikestonMO$49k0
GRINNELL SCHOOL OF MUSIC INCGrinnellIA$49k1
CREATIVE ACTION UNLIMITED INCEast GreenbushNY$49k0
HADDONFIELD OUTDOOR SCULPTURE TRUST INCHaddonfieldNJ$49k0
GRAND LAKE FESTIVALS INCTulsaOK$49k0
THE MELBA FOUNDATIONPasadenaCA$49k0
EMERSON THEATER COLLABORATIVE INCMysticCT$49k0