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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 674 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
ARX MUSIC ASSOCIATIONBellevueWA$47k1
Pharoah Phamily PhoundationChesapeakeVA$47k0
ACTORS STUDIO INCHemphillTX$47k0
KACHIN AMERICAN ASSOCIATIONJacksonvilleFL$47k0
NATIONAL SOCIETY OF COLONIAL DAMESSaint LouisMO$47k0
FRIENDS OF MODERN ARTFlintMI$47k0
ITHACA SHAKESPEARE COMPANY INCIthacaNY$47k0
GLOBAL MATERIAL TECHNOLOGIES CHARITABLE FOUNDATIONBuffalo GroveIL$47k0
WINDY CITY BLUES SOCIETYChicagoIL$47k0
BALLET FOLKLORICO TAYAHUAWaukeganIL$47k0
THE PORT HURON MUSICALEPort HuronMI$47k0
James Bowie Silver Stars Booster ClubAustinTX$47k0
EAST OF THE RIVER FOREIGN LANGUAGES FOR KIDSWashingtonDC$47k0
SIOUXLAND HERITAGE FOUNDATIONSioux CityIA$47k0
GREATER ST LOUIS ARTISTSEurekaMO$47k0
THE NOELKE FOUNDATIONSan AngeloTX$47k0
HERNANDO PHYSICIAN ALLIANCE FOUNDATION INCSpring HillFL$47k0
PATRIA Y CULTURA INCPoncePR$47k0
CHAMBER VOICES FOR CHANGE INCWake ForestNC$47k0
TEXAS LETTERING ARTS COUNCILCoppellTX$47k0
Project Arts of Plymouth IncPlymouthMA$47k0
BLESSING WAYNewcombNM$47k0
Village Heritage FoundationPinehurstNC$47k0
LAKESIDE VOCAL MUSIC AND DANCE BOOSTERLakesideCA$47k0
EARLY MUSIC MINNESOTASaint PaulMN$47k2
UTAH PIONEER HERITAGE ARTSSalt Lake CityUT$47k0
ORLEANS RENAISSANCE GROUP INCMedinaNY$47k0
American Art Pottery Association IncCincinnatiOH$47k0
Stamford Chorale IncStamfordCT$47k0
The Multivrs Is IlluminatedTucsonAZ$47k0
ALLIANCE ARTS COUNCILAllianceNE$47k1
SOMERVILLE OPEN STUDIOS INCSomervilleMA$47k0
TRAIN COLLECTORS ASSOCIATION FORT PITT DIVISION C/O ROBERT COONPittsburghPA$47k0
Different DynamicsSaint LouisMO$47k0
CDA ACT INCCoeur D AleneID$47k0
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA DANCE THEATRELong BeachCA$47k0
PIERMONT HISTORICAL SOCIETYPiermontNY$47k0
BOLINGBROOK HIGH SCHOOL MUSIC BOOSTERSBolingbrookIL$47k0
COMMUNITY MUSIC PROJECTJamestownNY$47k1
Noank Historical Society IncNoankCT$47k0
THE PHIL RAMONE ORCHESTRA FOR CHILDRENFront RoyalVA$47k0
LONGMONT CONCERT BANDLongmontCO$47k2
PINE ISLAND ART ASSOCIATION INCSaint James CityFL$47k0
NEW ENERGY MUSICWest ChesterPA$47k2
DORIS KENNEDY EDUCATION FOUNDATION CO GREENBERG FREEMAN LLPNew YorkNY$47k2
SHELBYVILLE BAND BOOSTERS INCShelbyvilleIN$47k0
CORAL FILARMONICA DE SAN JUANSan JuanPR$47k0
WRIGHT BROTHERS FLYERS INCMiamisburgOH$47k0
SPECULATIVE LITERATURE FOUNDATION INCOak ParkIL$47k1
UP IN ONE PRODUCTIONS INCHyde ParkNY$47k0