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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 830 of 861

Name
City
State
Revenue
Executives
JACKSON COUNTY JAMBOREE LTDJeffersonGA$3k0
Eastgate CreativeHuntington BeachCA$3k0
WAYLAND PRODUCTIONS LTDNew YorkNY$3k0
Friends of Raleigh Scottish DanceDurhamNC$3k0
Hispanic Community Organization For Life IncNew YorkNY$3k0
GBN FOUNDATION INCShirleyNY$3k0
EL PASO PRO-MUSICA FOUNDATIONEl PasoTX$3k0
BLACK COWBOY COALITIONHoustonTX$3k0
ART FOUNDATION OF DESERT HOT SPRINGSDesert Hot SpringsCA$3k0
THE REEL BLUES FEST INCWoods HoleMA$3k0
MEYERS THEATRE FOR YOUNG AUDIENCES INCOklahoma CityOK$3k0
Images for Conservation FundKingsvilleTX$3k0
NYCD DESI SOCIETY INCQueens VillageNY$3k0
THE AMERICAN CIVIL WAR MUSEUM FNDNRichmondVA$3k0
The Arts Grand StrandMyrtle BeachSC$3k0
FRIENDS OF THE DAVID FARNSLEY HOUSE INCLouisvilleKY$3k0
UTICA FIRE DEPARTMENT HISTORICAL SOUticaNY$3k0
American Kurdish Information NetworkWashingtonDC$3k0
AFRICAN-AMERICAN CULTURAL ALLIANCENashvilleTN$3k0
THE KEY IDEA INCCentervilleMA$3k0
ZIMFEST ASSOCIATIONSeattleWA$3k1
The Jimmy Alan StudioGarden GroveCA$3k0
LUMPKIN COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETYDahlonegaGA$3k0
BLOOM EARLY MUSICBloomsburgPA$3k3
NOLA BOOK OWNERSHIP PROJECTNew OrleansLA$3k0
OUT OF THE BINDERS INCWoodburyNY$3k0
GALESBURG HISTORICAL SOCIETY AND MUSEUMGalesburgKS$3k0
CHARLOTTESVILLE WRITING CENTER INCCharlottesvilleVA$3k0
CUERO Y SALADO HONDURAS FOUNDATIONOklahoma CityOK$3k0
MARTHA W DANIELS FOUNDATION INCCamdenSC$3k0
VETFLIXBrooklineNH$3k0
E-DANZAIowa CityIA$3k3
KEITH DINWIDDIE FOUNDATION INCDouglasAZ$3k0
HARRY JACKSON MUSEUMCodyWY$3k0
SOCIETY OF HISTORIANS OF EAST EUROPEAN EURASIAN AND RUSSIAN ARTDecaturnGA$3k0
CANDY STORE FOUNDATIONBurlingameCA$3k0
RRENJET SHQIPTARE ALBANIAN ROOTS INCStaten IslandNY$3k0
KEARSARGE COMMUNITY BAND INCNew LondonNH$3k0
JODHPUR PHOTOGRAPHY MUSEUMNew YorkNY$3k1
LOGIC FOUNDATION C/O NORTHWEST REGISTERED AGENT INCSacramentoCA$3k1
FREEHOLD ART EXCHANGEFreeholdNY$3k0
INTERNATIONAL HULA INSTITUTE C/O OLANA AIPearl CityHI$3k0
CHEROKEE NATIVE AMERICAN STATUE PRESERVATIONSaint LouisMO$3k0
NORA TERTZAG HAMPAR CHARITABLE TRUSTBeverly HillsCA$3k3
LOXAHATCHEE BATTLEFIELD PRESERVATIONISTS INCStuartFL$3k0
Alaska Inaugural Committee IncAnchorageAK$3k0
THE NEW CASTLE COTILLION INCHockessinDE$3k0
AMERICAN SOCIAL HISTORY PRODUCTIONS INCORPORATEDNew YorkNY$3k0
THE INSTITUTE OF BLACK INVENTION AND TECHNOLOGYKansas CityMO$3k0
BURNS PARK START INCArlingtonVA$3k0