Skip to main content
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 749 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
IMPROV BOULDER INCBoulderCO$22k0
MATTAPONI CULTURAL FOUNDATIONWest PointVA$22k0
ORDER CHAOS THEATER INCTollesonAZ$22k0
THE DOWSETT FOUNDATIONHonoluluHI$22k0
CNAG GAELIC LEAGUE LAPanorama CityCA$22k0
MACKTOWN LIVING HISTORYRocktonIL$22k0
THE PIONEERS-ANTELOPE COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY INCNelighNE$22k0
STAGE DOOR REPERTORY THEATREYorba LindaCA$22k0
CORTEZ VILLAGE HISTORICAL SOCIETY ICortezFL$22k0
Jazz Chez HannySan FranciscoCA$22k0
Martin County Historical SocietyWilliamstonNC$22k0
FRIENDS OF THE BOSTON IRISH FAMINE MEMORIAL INCBraintreeMA$22k0
WEBSTER THEATRE GUILD INCWebsterNY$22k0
DESI UDAANSan JoseCA$22k0
BENNION & DEVILLE CHARITABLE FOUNDARancho MirageCA$22k0
BOLD BEAUTY PROJECT INCMiamiFL$22k0
ZECHARIAH BOODEY FARMSTEAD COLLABORATIVENew DurhamNH$22k0
CARRIE LEIGHSCentraliaIL$22k0
LENA AREA HISTORICAL SOCIETYLenaIL$22k0
WILDER MEMORIAL MUSEUM INCStrawberry PointIA$22k0
ITALIAN AMERICAN CULTURAL ORGANIZATION INCBraintreeMA$22k0
HISTORIC OTTAWA BEACH SOCIETYHollandMI$22k0
Wasatch Cache Valley Ballet Support FoundationLoganUT$22k0
NEW YORK CHINESE NORTHEAST ASSOCIATION INCBaysideNY$22k0
SPOTLIGHT PARENT ASSOCIATIONKilleenTX$22k0
OUR COMMUNITY SALUTES OF SOUTH JERSEY A NJ NONPROFIT CORPORATIONCherry HillNJ$22k0
Raufi and Khaliq Foundation IncHaymarketVA$22k0
NORTH OLMSTED BAND AND ORCHESTRA BOOSTERS INCNorth OlmstedOH$22k0
MINNESOTA HINDI ASSOCIATIONEden PrairieMN$22k0
FST StudioProjects Fund Martien Halvorson-Taylor TrusteeCharlottesvilleVA$22k0
FIRST FLIGHT FOUNDATIONKitty HawkNC$22k1
Association for the Psychoanalysis of Culture & Society IncPort WashingtonNY$22k0
ASSOCIATION FOR THE LIBERTY THEATRE OF EEuniceLA$22k0
GRANDVUE FOUNDATIONEast JordanMI$22k0
RECKONING PRESSLake OrionMI$22k0
COLLECTIVE ARTS THEATER COMPANY LCNormanOK$22k0
NEWS UPNOWSan FranciscoCA$22k0
RHODE ISLAND PROFESSIONAL UNION FIREFIGHTERS PIPES & DRUMSCumberlandRI$22k0
Starts With Art NFPLa GrangeIL$22k0
BEAUX ARTS FUND COMMITTEE INCDavenportIA$22k0
SOCIETY FOR CREATIVE ANACHRONISM - MISSISSIPPI INCScotts ValleyCA$22k0
Moto IkebanaWest ChesterOH$22k0
FRIENDS OF ST STANISLAUS FOUNDATIONRochesterNY$22k0
DESCENDANTS MEDIA GROUP NFP INCChicagoIL$22k0
ASSOCIAZIONE CULTURALE PUGLIESEFIGLI MARIA SS ADDOLORATA INCBrooklynNY$22k0
DBA ARTSINCSacramentoCA$22k0
HAROLD V LUCAS JR FOUNDATION INCDaytona BeachFL$22k0
LINES AND SPACES INCBelmontMA$22k0
STONEY TEXAS HISTORICAL SOCIETYPonderTX$22k0
PRODUCERS GUILD OF AMERICA FOUNDATIONLos AngelesCA$22k1