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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 728 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
HORIZON WEST THEATER COMPANY INCWindermereFL$28k0
THE ACADEMY OF SAINT CECILIA YOUTH ORCHESTRA INCDamascusMD$28k0
MICHIGAN STREET PRESERVATION CORPBuffaloNY$28k0
BODHI TREE CONCERTSLa JollaCA$28k0
China Spring Electric Blues Booster ClubChina SpringTX$28k0
BERKELEY HIGH SCHOOL BETA BOOSTER CLUBMoncks CornerSC$28k0
Crescent Cultural Community CenterBirminghamAL$28k0
NAKEDEYE INCLancasterPA$28k0
Community Partners Advocate of Little Saigon SacramentoElk GroveCA$28k0
THE PARADIGM PRESS CORPJacksonvilleFL$28k0
APPALACHIA FREE PRESS INCMorgantownWV$28k0
ACE THEATER FOUNDATION INCMiamiFL$28k0
CLAY STUDIO GROUPCorpus ChristiTX$28k0
ASSOCIATION OF TOGOLESE IN CHICAGOLANDChicagoIL$28k0
COLE COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETYJefferson CityMO$28k0
INDIGENOUS LENSESSalt Lake CityUT$28k0
HORACE A MOSES TUA - SMITH ARTPenningtonNJ$28k1
BOOKSTOCK INCWoodstockVT$28k0
The Black Repertory GroupBerkeleyCA$28k1
THE 173D AIRBORNE BRIGADE NATIONAL MEMORIAL FOUNDATION INCAtlantaGA$28k0
SOUTHWEST MUSEUM OF THE AMERICAN INDIANEast MeadowNY$28k0
CHIEF COMMUNITY THEATER INCColdwaterKS$28k1
HHP ARTS GUILD INCHilton Head IslandSC$28k0
CAMERATA NOTTURNA INCNew YorkNY$28k0
WOLFGANG ORCHESTRA & CHORUS INCMount VernonIN$28k2
SAN DIEGO SUZUKI SCHOOL OF MUSICEncinitasCA$28k0
THE LONG ISLAND ARTS COUNCIL AT FREEPORT INCFreeportNY$28k0
JAMES BURTON FOUNDATIONShreveportLA$28k0
GREATER BRIDGEPORT ST PATRICK'S DAY CELEBRATION INCBridgeportCT$28k0
SURABHI MUSIC ACADEMYFriscoTX$28k0
OPERA THEATER OREGONPortlandOR$28k2
AMERICAN SLOVAK PROTECTIVE SOCIETY OF EAST DEER TOWNSHIPCreightonPA$28k0
Four Corners GalleryTivertonRI$28k0
WOMEN IN VISUAL ARTS INCBoca RatonFL$28k0
ATCHISON JUNETEENTH COMMITTEE INCAtchisonKS$28k0
Fundacion Verde Aguacate IncSan JuanPR$28k0
MON VALLEY PERFORMING ARTS ACADEMYCaliforniaPA$28k0
SIPAN ARMENIAN SCHOOL INCParamusNJ$28k0
The Intrigue Yellow FoundationChicagoIL$28k0
SOL CHILDREN THEATRE INCBoca RatonFL$28k1
Peace Valley Healing CenterBoulderMT$28k0
FICUS COMMUNITY MEDIA CORPORATIONPalo AltoCA$28k0
LA VISTA HISTORICAL FOUNDATIONNational CityCA$28k0
RED CANOE FOUNDATIONLongviewWA$28k0
RUMI AND MARY FOUNDATION INCMahwahNJ$28k0
REVOLUTION 250 INCBostonMA$28k0
JAY COUNTY 4th OF JULY COMMITTEE INCPortlandIN$28k0
FRIENDS OF FORT JEFFERSONGreenvilleOH$28k0
NORTH AUGUSTA CULTURAL ARTS COUNCILNorth AugustaSC$28k0
LAKOTA MUSIC BOOSTERSKansasOH$28k0