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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 675 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
RIDGWAY RAILROAD MUSEUMRidgwayCO$47k0
ROCKLAND IRISH AMERICAN CULTURAL CENTER INCBlauveltNY$47k0
KUTZTOWN AREA HISTORICAL SOCIETYKutztownPA$47k0
SAN DIEGO FOLK HERITAGESan DiegoCA$47k0
JAZZ INSPIRED INC C/O JUDY CARMICHAELSag HarborNY$47k0
ALBANIAN AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF STATEN ISLAND INCStaten IslandNY$47k0
SOUNDS OF STOW INC C/O MICHELE CROSBY TREASURERStowMA$47k2
NATIONAL AGRI-MARKETING ASSOCIATION NAMA FOUNDATIONLeawoodKS$47k0
Wylliams-Henry Contemporary DanceKansas CityMO$47k0
Delaware Nepali SocietyBearDE$47k0
ASIAN INDIAN HERITAGE ASSOCIATIONHillsboroughNJ$47k0
ROLLA BAND BOOSTERS INC C/O JOHN SLOWENSKYRollaMO$47k0
HEARTLAND COMMUNITY THEATREClintonMO$47k0
Lomita Railroad Museum Foundation IncLomitaCA$47k0
FRIENDS OF THE WARE NECK STOREWare NeckVA$47k0
FOUNDATION FOR THE ENDOWMENT OF THE AMERICAN BIRKEBEINER INCHaywardWI$47k0
Joann Tolboe Krajeski FoundationPeoaUT$47k0
Little Italy Festival Town IncClintonIN$47k0
Pennsylvania United Chinese Coalition IncPhiladelphiaPA$47k0
Texas History TrustCorpus ChristiTX$47k0
NORTH COUNTY DANCE AND PERFORMING ARTSPaso RoblesCA$47k0
Why Not AfricaFortsonGA$47k0
NHSO FOUNDATION INCNew HavenCT$47k0
KNOW ALLEGIANCE NATIONDetroitMI$47k1
MATHEWS MARITIME FOUNDATIONMathewsVA$47k0
ENRICHMENT THROUGH CULTURE ETC INCCumberlandWI$47k0
Hmong Culture CampMercedCA$47k1
CIRCUS FANS ASSOCIATION OF AMERICABarabooWI$47k0
ANACORTES MUSEUM FOUNDATIONAnacortesWA$47k0
SACRED VOICESDenverCO$47k4
ALLIANCE FRANCAISE OF HAMPTON ROADSNorfolkVA$47k0
SOUNDS OF THE SOUTHWEST SINGERS INCGlendaleAZ$47k0
Comite Guelaguetza International Benefit Organization IncSanta MariaCA$47k0
TENNESSEE CIVIL WAR PRESERVATION ASSOCIATIONNashvilleTN$47k0
FREMONT MIDLAND ENTERTAINMENT SERIESFremontNE$47k0
FRIENDS OF THE OKLAHOMA ARTS COUNCIL INCOklahoma CityOK$47k0
ZHENG LIU FAMILY FOUNDATIONFremontCA$47k0
JAZZ PASSENGERS MUSIC PROJECTS INCNew YorkNY$47k2
DEL SOLE FOUNDATIONDallasTX$47k0
THE WACHS GREAT BOOKS FORUM INCMediaPA$47k0
GREENVILLE PUBLIC ACCESS TELEVISION CORPORATIONGreenvilleNC$47k0
JESSIE M MENSCH TRUST UWMilwaukeeWI$47k1
MADISON SAVOYARDS LTDMadisonWI$47k0
RVF ASSOCIATIONSaltvilleVA$47k0
TRUST TREE INCNorth Little RockAR$47k0
MARYLAND CHORAL SOCIETY INCUpper MarlboroMD$47k2
Firkin PressRestonVA$47k0
PALMDALE REPERTORY THEATRE GROUPPalmdaleCA$47k0
NEW HAMPSHIRE LEGENDS OF HOCKEYManchesterNH$47k1
RAPID CITY CONCERT ASSOCIATIONRapid CitySD$47k0