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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 673 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
Rock n Roll Camp for Girls San DiegoEncinitasCA$48k1
NEW ROOM STUDIOSPortlandOR$48k1
CLARION CONCERTS IN COLUMBIA COUNTYPhilmontNY$48k0
MICHIGAN FALLEN HEROES MEMORIALPontiacMI$48k0
THE H B PLAYWRIGHTS FOUNDATION INCNew YorkNY$48k1
HUNTINGTON BEACH MUNICIPAL ART CENTER FOUNDATIONHuntington BeachCA$48k0
THE THELMA HILL PERFORMING ARTS CENTER INCBrooklynNY$48k0
DAVIDS HARP A CENTER FOR MUSICAL DEVELOPMENTCouncil BlfsIA$48k0
ARAB MUSICAL THEATRE INCArabAL$48k0
COLO MASONIC HIGH SCHOOL BAND CAMPColorado SpringsCO$48k0
NABJ CHICAGO CHAPTER NFPChicagoIL$48k0
Ananda College Old Boys Association of West Coast USAIrvineCA$48k0
PHILIPSBURG HISTORICAL FOUNDATIONPhilipsburgPA$48k0
URBANNA BEAUTIFICATION INCUrbannaVA$48k0
RESURGENS THEATRE COMPANYDecaturGA$48k0
ARTS FOR EVERETT INCEverettMA$48k0
NATCHEZ LITTLE THEATRE INCNatchezMS$48k0
COLONIAL CHORUS INCReadingMA$48k0
MARYLAND CONSERVATORY OF MUSIC INCBel AirMD$48k1
OZARK ROOTS MUSIC AND ARTMountain ViewAR$48k0
CYPRECO OF AMERICA INCAstoriaNY$48k0
Kemper Ministries IncIndian TrailNC$48k1
WINDSONGLakewoodOH$48k0
FRIENDS OF GEM THEATERLas VegasNV$48k0
RICHLAND ARTS COUNCIL INCRayvilleLA$48k0
DEACON JOHN GRAVE FOUNDATION INCMadisonCT$48k0
Clarksburg History Museum IncClarksburgWV$48k0
DEAF AUSTIN THEATREAustinTX$48k1
LORETTA LEE VER VALEN ENDOWMENT FUND FORBuffaloNY$48k1
PLACER ARTISTS TOURAuburnCA$48k0
SOCIETY FOR PRESERVATION AND ADVANCEMENT OF THE HARMONICADallasTX$48k0
AFRICAN AMERICAN DAY PARADEBronxNY$48k12
OPERA GUILD OF GRANBURYGranburyTX$47k0
THE 1944 WAR MUSEUMWashingtonMO$47k0
BEYOND THE 4TH WALL EXPRESSION THEATRE ICambridgeMA$47k0
TREASURE COAST YOUTH BALLET INCPort Saint LucieFL$47k0
South Holland Master CoraleSouth HollandIL$47k0
ART-NOT TERMINAL GALLERYSeattleWA$47k0
THEATREWORKS OF NORTHERN NEVADASparksNV$47k0
RISING ARTIST FOUNDATION INCBrooklynNY$47k0
GREENSBORO CHINESE ASSOCIATION INCHigh PointNC$47k1
Lear Mentoring IncMemphisTN$47k0
BOYCHOIR OF ANN ARBORAnn ArborMI$47k2
MCCLANAHAN SCHOOL PARENTS ASSOCIATION INLouisvilleKY$47k0
SILICON VALLEY LUMINARY SOCIETYRedwood CityCA$47k0
TETRA STRING QUARTETMesaAZ$47k0
RENAISSANCE THEATRE COLynchburgVA$47k0
Community Artist Gallery & StudiosIncNew BernNC$47k0
TURKISH AMERICAN EYUP SULTAN CULTERAL CENTER INCBrooklynNY$47k0
YPSILANTI AUTO HERITAGE MUSEUMYpsilantiMI$47k0