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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 703 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
INTERNATIONAL MAPLE MUSEUM CENTRECroghanNY$37k1
Long Island Association of the Motion Picture ArtsOceansideNY$37k1
COMPAQ BIG BAND INCMont VernonNH$37k0
MOANA'S HULA HALAUKaunakakaiHI$37k0
HUMAN CONNECTION ARTS INCNew YorkNY$37k0
UNIVERSITY CLUB FOUNDATION INCIndianapolisIN$37k0
EMERALD CITY ROMANCE WRITERSBellevueWA$37k0
M&M Performing Arts Company IncYorktown HeightsNY$37k0
FESTIVAL OF NEW TRUMPET MUSIC INC (AKA FONT MUSIC)New YorkNY$37k0
MAUI COMIC CONKahuluiHI$37k0
ZIMMERMAN GLASSTOBERFEST INC C/O KERRY ZIMMERMANCorydonIN$37k0
Boyne Falls Polish Festival CommitteeBoyne FallsMI$37k0
TREVILIAN STATION BATTLEFIELD FOUNDATION INCTreviliansVA$37k0
HARMONY STUDIOS INCWoodbridgeVA$37k1
McKinney Community BandMcKinneyTX$37k0
THE HEDGELAWN FOUNDATION INCBettertonMD$37k0
UNION COUNTY OPRYMaynardvilleTN$37k0
UNLISTED PROJECTSAustinTX$37k0
OLD TRAIL MUSEUMChoteauMT$37k1
LENA WINSLOW MUSIC BOOSTERSLenaIL$37k0
Annisquam Village PlayersGloucesterMA$37k0
UNITED MUSIC ASSOCIATION INCBrooklynNY$37k1
COLORADO AMP ORGANIZATIONThorntonCO$37k0
ROXBURY BANDSHELL PRESERVATION ALLIANCEJohnstownPA$37k0
ARTSTRAVancouverWA$37k1
THE NEAL PEIRCE FOUNDATIONWashingtonDC$37k0
CUATROGATOS FOUNDATION INCMiamiFL$37k2
NATIVE MEMORY PROJECTDuBoisWY$37k0
ROCKY MOUNTAIN MUSTANG ROUNDUPDenverCO$37k0
Palm Springs Center for CreativityPalm SpringsCA$37k0
MEMORIAL HALL ASSOCIATION INCShelburne FallsMA$37k0
ALTADENA HERITAGEAltadenaCA$37k0
Forging CommunityDuluthMN$37k8
HOPERAHoustonTX$37k0
BUTTERFLY LODGE MUSEUMGreerAZ$37k0
SOUTH COBB ARTS ALLIANCE INCAustellGA$37k0
Theater Ensemble Arts IncFarmingtonNM$37k0
MELROSE BANDAIDERS INCMelroseMA$37k0
OSAGE COUNTY FAIR ASSOCIATIONOsage CityKS$37k0
THE ROUND BARN OF HALCOTTSVILLE INC DBA PAKATAKAN FARMERS MARKETMargaretvilleNY$37k1
THE SHAKESPEARE FORUM INCNew YorkNY$37k2
BIRCH INCParkerCO$37k0
JOSHUA GLYNN MEMORIAL FOUNDATION INCPlymouthMA$37k0
Dave Irish MinistriesBellevueWA$37k1
OWATONNA MARCHING BAND BOOSTERSOwatonnaMN$37k0
LAKE HAVASU CITY HISTORICAL SOCIETYLake Havasu CityAZ$37k0
BERKSHIRE COMMUNITY RADIO ALLIANCE INCGreat BarringtonMA$37k0
CULTURAL HERITAGE SOCIETY OF THE CAMINO REAL DE TIERRA ADENTROEl PasoTX$37k0
THE FILER FOUNDATIONLake Forest ParkWA$37k0
THE ONE BODY INITIATIVEDurhamNC$37k0