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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 76 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
ASSOCIATION FOR PUBLIC ARTPhiladelphiaPA$1.9M2
EVANSVILLE PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRALEvansvilleIN$1.9M2
HISTORIC SHIPS IN BALTIMOREBaltimoreMD$1.9M0
ST JOHNS COUNTY CULTURAL COUNCILSaint AugustineFL$1.9M1
CHILDREN'S MUSEUM OF EAU CLAIRE INCEau ClaireWI$1.9M2
HOUSTON CENTER FOR CONTEMPORARY CRAFTHoustonTX$1.9M1
ARTS COUNCIL OF FORT WORTH AND TARRANT COUNTY INCFort WorthTX$1.9M3
OFFSHORE RIG MUSEUM INCHoustonTX$1.9M1
GRAND RAPIDS CABLE ACCESS CTR INC D/B/A COMMUNITY MEDIA CENTERGrand RapidsMI$1.9M1
AMERICA SUCCEEDSDenverCO$1.9M3
MEDIA ALLIANCESan FranciscoCA$1.9M2
NEW WEST SYMPHONY ASSOCIATIONThousand OaksCA$1.9M1
NEW BEDFORD SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA ASSOCIATION INCNew BedfordMA$1.9M1
THE COMPANY THEATRE INCNorwellMA$1.9M3
Pacific Locomotive Association Inc Niles Canyon RailwaySunolCA$1.9M0
FRIENDS OF THE CHICAGO RIVERChicagoIL$1.9M1
WARHAWK AIR MUSEUM INCNampaID$1.9M0
CATAWBA SCIENCE CENTER INCHickoryNC$1.9M1
Galeria Studio 24San FranciscoCA$1.9M1
DC YOUTH ORCHESTRA PROGRAMWashingtonDC$1.9M3
BEMIS CENTER FOR CONTEMPORARY ARTS INCOmahaNE$1.9M1
WORKING ASSUMPTIONS FOUNDATIONBerkeleyCA$1.9M0
GREATER BOSTON STAGE COMPANYStonehamMA$1.9M2
AMERICAN MURAL PROJECT INCWinstedCT$1.9M1
Osceola Arts IncKissimmeeFL$1.9M0
POTLATCH FUNDSeattleWA$1.9M2
Museum of the Cherokee PeopleCherokeeNC$1.9M1
NEW BALLET ENSEMBLE INCMemphisTN$1.9M1
UNITED ARTS COUNCIL OF RALEIGH AND WAKE COUNTY INCRaleighNC$1.9M2
WILKINSON COUNTY CHRISTIAN ACADEMYWoodvilleMS$1.9M0
OUTLIER MEDIADetroitMI$1.9M2
THEATRE WORKSHOP OF NANTUCKET INCNantucketMA$1.9M0
ARTOWNRenoNV$1.9M0
SALT LICK INCUBATOR INCBelmontMA$1.9M1
USA DANCE INCMedfordOR$1.9M0
THE PRODUCTION FARM INCWhitelawWI$1.9M2
WORDS OF PEACE INTERNATIONALWestlake VillageCA$1.9M0
GO WORKSHOPAustinTX$1.9M1
HISTORIC LANSDOWNE THEATER CORPLansdownePA$1.9M1
AFRICAN AMERICAN QUILT GUILD OF GASTON COUNTYKings MountainNC$1.9M0
The RIPM Consortium LTDBaltimoreMD$1.9M2
UPSTATE FILMS LTDRhinebeckNY$1.9M2
FOUND SOUND NATION INCRidgewoodNY$1.9M3
LES BALLETS TROCKADERO DE MONTE CARLO INCNew YorkNY$1.9M2
RANCHO LOS CERRITOS FOUNDATIONLong BeachCA$1.9M1
RENAISSANCE PERFORMING ARTS ASSOCIATION INCMansfieldOH$1.9M1
THE BLACK HILLS PLAYHOUSE INCRapid CitySD$1.9M0
COLLEGE OF ADAPTIVE ARTSSaratogaCA$1.9M5
Grabhorn InstituteSan FranciscoCA$1.9M1
WOODWORTH FAMILY FOUNDATIONTacomaWA$1.9M0