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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 722 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
AGWADEYESTA DOGEH INCSalamancaNY$30k0
NORFOLK AREA CONCERT ASSOC INCNorfolkNE$30k0
THE SPHINX FOUNDATION FOR ARCHAELOGICAL RESEARCHChicagoIL$30k0
UNION COUNTY ARTS COUNCIL INCUnionSC$30k1
Angels of GlorySan AntonioTX$30k0
SEMILLA DE BIENESTARHerculesCA$30k0
LUFKIN SIDELINERS INCLufkinTX$30k0
THE ELEANOR ROOSEVELT VAL-KILL PARTNERSHIPHyde ParkNY$30k0
JULIAN GAUBostonMA$30k0
LKA INCSilver SpringMD$30k0
MICHIGAN BEAN FESTIVAL ASSOCIATIONFairgroveMI$30k0
FLYING CLOUD LOG CANOE PRESERVATION TRUST LTDBoydsMD$30k0
INTERNATIONAL SEX WORKERS FOUNDATION FOR ART CULTURE AND EDUCATIONLas VegasNV$30k0
RIO GRANDE MODELING&HISTORICAL SOCColorado SpringsCO$30k0
HABITABLE SPACESKingsburyTX$30k0
BLUE RIDGE ARTS COUNCIL INCFront RoyalVA$30k1
Docutribe IncCortlandt ManorNY$30k0
The League of World War I Aviation HistoriansWarrenNJ$30k0
THE LOOP YOUNGSTOWN ARTS & CULTURE CENTERYoungstownOH$30k0
MINNESOTA SUPREME COURT HISTORICAL SOCIETYChisagoMN$30k0
MOVEMENT ARTS CREATION STUDIO INCCambridgeMA$30k0
BARRE PLAYERS INCBarreMA$30k0
GREEK AMERICAN FOLKLORE SOCIETY INCAstoriaNY$30k0
JW CHORALE IN NY & NJ INCPalisades ParkNJ$30k0
Father Leopold Moczygemba FoundatioLa VerniaTX$30k0
Butimar ProductionsSan MateoCA$30k0
AMERICAN MUSEUM OF PEACERehobeth BeachDE$30k1
Roy-Hart Music Parents Club IncMiddleportNY$30k0
PHILADELPHIA ASSEMBLY INCPhiladelphiaPA$30k5
FORUM OF REGIONAL ARTS COUNCILS OF MINNESOTA INCWarrenMN$30k0
CHAMBERMUSICNY INCNew YorkNY$30k0
CHARLEY AND EDIE HARPER FOUNDATIONLebanonOH$30k0
DAVIDSON FOUNDATION FOR MUSIC DANCE AND DRAMATIC ARTSLos AngelesCA$30k0
HELPS ON THE WAYGarbervilleCA$30k0
HOA LU CENTER - LTTHL HOA KYOrangeCA$30k0
JACK NICKLAUS MUSEUM INCColumbusOH$30k0
KENTUCKY MAIN STREET ASSOCIATIONMoreheadKY$30k0
KNOTTY LUXE ARTS FOUNDATIONMarkhamIL$30k1
LUCKY PENNYWhite Sulphur SpringsWV$30k0
LUMIS MEDIA INCNew YorkNY$30k0
Oneness GardenEncinitasCA$30k0
OXFORD SHAKE-SPEARE COMPANYDeLandFL$30k1
PH FILM PRESERVATION LTD C/O MAX WEINMANBrooklynNY$30k0
RML CHARITABLE FOUNDATION TRUSTClearwaterFL$30k0
VOICES ORGSeattleWA$30k0
Younhee Paiks Studio for Art and MusicOaklandCA$30k0
Wayne Historical Preservation SocietyWayneIL$30k0
Aspire Artisan Studios & Folk SchoolVictoriaMN$30k1
THE FLORENCE MUSEUMFlorenceSC$30k0
COMMUNITY CULTURAL CENTER OF THE SIDNEY ARTS AND CULTURE EXCHANGESidneyNY$30k0