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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 796 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
COMMUNITY CONCERT NETWORK INCStaten IslandNY$10k0
DANCING THROUGH BRIHoustonTX$10k0
DHM PRODUCTIONS INCFountain ValleyCA$10k0
ELC DEVELOPMENTSeattleWA$10k4
Flux FoundationOaklandCA$10k0
GONZALES YOUTH BALLETGonzalesTX$10k0
HISTORICALLY SIGNIFICANT STRUCTURES INCORPORATEDPhiladelphiaPA$10k0
HORIZON CENTER FOR CHINESE CULTURE AND HERITAGEMercer IslandWA$10k0
International School of the Voice IncSugar LandTX$10k0
KING RECORDS LEGACY INCCincinnatiOH$10k0
MARC GELLMAN INSTITUTE INCBoca RatonFL$10k0
MEHR FOUNDATIONLewesDE$10k0
Music Milton IncMiltonGA$10k0
PAZHWAK FOUNDATION INCFairfaxVA$10k0
PICO UNION HOPELos AngelesCA$10k0
Rising Poets Community CorpScottsdaleAZ$10k0
SALVADOR ART PRESERVATION INCSt PetersburgFL$10k0
SHEIKH RUSSEL FOUNDATION USA INCManhasset HillsNY$10k0
STUDIO NIKKI INCUpper MarlboroMD$10k0
SWORD & SPOON WORKSHOP INCAustinTX$10k0
The Creative Living Room IncWallingfordPA$10k1
THE FOUNDATION FOR AMERICAS RESEARCH INCWinter SpgsFL$10k0
THE GRUNBAUM FISCHER FOUNDATION INC C/O TIMOTHY M REIFNew YorkNY$10k0
THE XU FOUNDATIONWalnutCA$10k0
TRINITY RIVER COMMUNITY PTNRS INCWeavervilleCA$10k0
UNEMAG INCNew YorkNY$10k0
VETERANS MONUMENT FOUNDATION OF WHITEMARSHLafayette HillPA$10k0
Walker Youngbird FoundationWashingtonDC$10k1
YUYENCIA NATIONAL FOUNDATIONBellevueWA$10k0
ASIAN CULTURE ASSOCIATIONLisleIL$10k0
NEWARK STREET UNION MEETING HOUSENewarkVT$10k0
LAGOS STATE SCHOOL OF NURSING ALUMIChicagoIL$10k0
CLAN MACBEAN INCLakewoodCO$10k0
SKULL DOLLZ FACE PAINTINGFairbornOH$10k0
DIGICOM LEARNINGSanta FeNM$10k0
OUR TOWN THEATRE GROUPNorth CreekNY$10k0
PARK THEATRE GROUPMcMinnvilleTN$10k0
UKULELE FESTIVAL HAWAIIHonoluluHI$10k0
YEAH8Pine BluffAR$10k0
Historic Meacham Hotel & Retreat Center IncPendletonOR$10k0
SOUTHEASTERN REGION LEGACY OF LIGHT FOUNDATIONAtlantaGA$10k0
WANBO INCNew Hyde ParkNY$10k0
COMIC STUDIES SOCIETYMainevilleOH$10k0
CONNELLSVILLE LITTLE HOUSE SOCIETY INCConnellsvillePA$10k0
PATTI NELSON FOUNDATION CORPORATIONEvans CityPA$10k0
MACHA MONKEY PRODUCTIONSSeattleWA$10k0
DAMASCUS HERITAGE SOCIETY INCDamascusMD$10k0
BARBARA A STONE FOUNDATION FOR BAGLEY PERFORMING ARTSSeattleWA$10k0
MIDDLE EAR PROJECTPasadenaCA$10k0
BUFFALO CREEK FOUNDATIONThermopolisWY$10k0