U.S. Nonprofit Executive Director Salary:
2024 Benchmarks
The median U.S. nonprofit executive director earns $86,580 per year based on 56,651 organizations filing IRS Form 990 for tax year 2024. Executive directors typically lead smaller organizations than CEOs and earn roughly 42% of the median CEO salary. Here is what the data shows.
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Median ED Salary
$86,580
25th Percentile
$50,966
75th Percentile
$137,584
Data Points
56,651
Tax year 2024 data includes 519,095 filings. Executive director salary benchmarks below are based on 56,651 organizations from 2024 filings — more than three times the CEO dataset, reflecting that "Executive Director" is the most common top-leadership title in the nonprofit sector. We continuously update our datasets as new filings become available from the IRS.
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Executive Director Salary by Organization Budget Size
Budget size is the single largest factor in executive director compensation. EDs at organizations with budgets over $25M earn more than four times those at sub-$1M organizations. Based on 56,651 ED compensation records from tax year 2024 Form 990 filings.
| Budget Size | Median Salary | 25th Pctl | 75th Pctl | # Orgs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Under $1M | $62,246 | $35,000 | $91,052 | 33,657 |
| $1M - $5M | $119,267 | $89,354 | $162,105 | 16,406 |
| $5M - $10M | $170,040 | $127,351 | $230,090 | 3,290 |
| $10M - $25M | $208,219 | $155,534 | $291,330 | 2,079 |
| $25M+ | $269,078 | $195,552 | $384,204 | 1,219 |
| Total | 56,651 |
Source: IRS Form 990 electronically filed returns, Tax year 2024. All 56,651 ED records included.. 5 categories shown.
Get more data →Executive Director Salary by State (Top 10)
Washington D.C. leads by a wide margin, with executive directors earning nearly double the national median. This reflects the concentration of national advocacy organizations, policy groups, and trade associations in the capital. Based on states with 100+ ED records in tax year 2024.
| State | Median Salary | 25th Pctl | 75th Pctl | # Orgs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Washington D.C. | $168,974 | $104,581 | $252,075 | 1,226 |
| Massachusetts | $113,700 | $69,134 | $167,434 | 1,615 |
| New York | $110,309 | $63,880 | $188,069 | 4,165 |
| New Jersey | $103,998 | $58,120 | $159,534 | 1,107 |
| California | $103,994 | $60,000 | $164,123 | 4,970 |
| Connecticut | $99,162 | $60,000 | $153,475 | 649 |
| Delaware | $97,901 | $57,372 | $145,762 | 227 |
| Washington | $95,004 | $61,111 | $140,058 | 2,027 |
| Rhode Island | $94,924 | $52,650 | $146,755 | 260 |
| Maryland | $93,310 | $53,838 | $154,700 | 1,089 |
| Total | 17,335 |
Source: IRS Form 990 electronically filed returns, Tax year 2024. States with 100+ ED records shown.. 10 categories shown.
Get more data →Executive Director Salary by Sector (Top 10)
Housing & shelter and employment-focused nonprofits pay the highest executive director salaries, reflecting the operational complexity and regulatory requirements of these sectors. Based on NTEE classification (via BMF) of 2024 Form 990 filings. Top 10 sectors by median salary shown.
| Sector (NTEE) | Median Salary | 25th Pctl | 75th Pctl | # Orgs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Housing & Shelter | $110,431 | $69,547 | $162,440 | 1,870 |
| Employment | $104,117 | $65,829 | $155,376 | 638 |
| Healthcare | $99,862 | $60,500 | $158,254 | 2,526 |
| Crime & Legal | $99,715 | $64,541 | $149,200 | 1,313 |
| Environment | $92,497 | $60,739 | $130,822 | 2,207 |
| International | $88,870 | $48,000 | $143,944 | 994 |
| Community Improvement | $86,250 | $51,042 | $140,105 | 3,300 |
| Education | $86,103 | $48,000 | $140,569 | 4,361 |
| Mental Health | $84,039 | $52,020 | $121,320 | 1,537 |
| Human Services | $80,701 | $50,868 | $121,856 | 7,712 |
| Total | 26,458 |
Source: IRS Form 990 electronically filed returns, Tax year 2024. 10 categories shown.
Get more data →What Factors Affect Executive Director Salary?
Four key drivers explain most of the variation in nonprofit executive director compensation.
Executive director compensation is driven by a combination of organizational and market factors. The title "Executive Director" is the most common top-leadership designation in the nonprofit sector — our dataset includes 56,651 EDs compared to 18,185 CEOs. Organizations using the ED title tend to be smaller, which explains much of the pay gap between EDs and CEOs.
Budget Size
The single largest predictor. EDs at organizations with $25M+ budgets earn a median of $269,078, more than four times the $62,246 median at sub-$1M organizations. Nearly 60% of EDs work at organizations with budgets under $1M.
Geography
EDs in Washington D.C. earn a median of $168,974, nearly double the national median. Massachusetts ($113,700) and New York ($110,309) follow, reflecting cost of living and the concentration of larger organizations.
Sector
Housing & shelter EDs earn the highest sector median at $110,431, driven by the complexity of managing affordable housing programs, HUD compliance, and real estate operations. Healthcare EDs earn $99,862.
ED vs. CEO Title
The median ED earns $86,580 compared to $207,708 for CEOs. This gap is primarily driven by organization size: 60% of EDs are at sub-$1M organizations, compared to 29% of CEOs. At similar budget sizes, the gap narrows significantly.
The Title Gap Is Really a Size Gap
Executive directors earn 42% of the median CEO salary ($86,580 vs. $207,708). But this is misleading — 60% of EDs lead organizations with budgets under $1M, while only 29% of CEOs do. At the $10M-$25M budget tier, EDs earn $208,219 versus $296,252 for CEOs, a much narrower 30% gap.
Understanding the Salary Range
The spread between the 25th and 75th percentile reveals significant variation within every category.
The overall median of $86,580 masks a wide range. The 25th percentile is $50,966, meaning one in four nonprofit executive directors earns less than that. The 75th percentile is $137,584. This range reflects the enormous diversity of organizations that use the ED title, from a two-person arts council to a 200-employee community development corporation.
Within the $25M+ budget category, the range widens further. The 25th percentile is $195,552 while the 75th percentile reaches $384,204. These EDs are leading large, complex organizations that chose to use the "Executive Director" title rather than "CEO" — often because of organizational culture or governance tradition.
Interquartile Range
The $87K gap between the 25th percentile ($50,966) and 75th percentile ($137,584) shows how much ED pay varies across the nonprofit sector.
Mean vs. Median
The mean ED salary is $108,938, about 26% higher than the median of $86,580. This gap is smaller than for CEOs (where the mean is 97% higher), because there are fewer extreme outliers among executive directors.
How to Benchmark Executive Director Compensation
The IRS requires that ED pay be comparable to similar organizations. Match on these four variables.
Budget Size
Find organizations within 50-200% of your annual budget. This is the single largest driver of ED pay. A $500K organization should not benchmark against $5M organizations.
Sector
Match by NTEE category. A housing ED and an arts ED at the same budget have very different market rates — $110,431 vs. $68,696 at the median.
Geography
Compare within your state or metro area. D.C. executive directors earn 95% more than the national median.
Total Compensation
Include base pay, benefits, deferred comp, and perks. The IRS evaluates the full package, not just the salary line.
25th-75th
The reasonable range
ED pay between the 25th and 75th percentile of comparable organizations is generally considered reasonable. Above the 75th percentile requires documented justification.
IRS Safe Harbor: Protect Your Board
Meet all three requirements to shift the burden of proof to the IRS.
Without Safe Harbor
Your board must prove compensation is reasonable. The IRS can challenge any decision, and penalties hit board members personally.
With Safe Harbor
The IRS must prove compensation is excessive. Your board has a rebuttable presumption of reasonableness.
Independent Committee
Board members with no financial interest in the outcome. Staff and anyone who benefits from the decision cannot participate.
Comparability Data
Salary data from similar organizations: Form 990 filings, compensation surveys, or other reliable sources matched by budget, sector, and geography.
Written Record
Document the data reviewed, the deliberation, and the basis for the decision. Complete before the next board meeting after the vote.
Penalties are personal
25% excise tax on the executive for excess compensation. 10% on each approving board member (up to $20,000 each). Section 4958 penalties hit individuals, not the organization.
How We Help
Our Comparability Study generates a board-ready report with Form 990 data matched to your budget, sector, and geography. It satisfies the comparability data requirement and provides a documentation framework for all three safe harbor elements.
Our Comparability Study generates a board-ready report with Form 990 data matched to your budget, sector, and geography. It satisfies the comparability data requirement and provides a documentation framework for all three safe harbor elements.
How This Data Is Calculated
Transparency in methodology builds trust.
Sample Size
56,651 organizations
Data Source
IRS Form 990 electronically filed returns
Period
Tax year 2024
Executive directors are identified by the normalized title "Executive Director" from Part VII of Form 990. Where an organization reports multiple executive directors, we use the highest-compensated individual. Total compensation includes reportable compensation from the organization, related organizations, and other compensation (benefits, deferred comp, nontaxable fringe). All monetary values are stored in cents and converted to dollars. Only records with total compensation greater than $0 are included.
Total Compensation (not just base salary)
We use the Form 990 Part VII total compensation figure, which includes reportable comp from the organization, comp from related organizations, and other compensation (benefits, deferred comp, nontaxable fringe). This matches what the IRS evaluates for reasonableness under Section 4958.
One Executive Director per Organization
Where an organization reports multiple people with an Executive Director title, we use the highest-compensated individual. This handles co-ED arrangements and ED transitions (outgoing + incoming in the same filing year) and provides the cleanest benchmark.
Title Matching
Executive directors are identified by the normalized title "Executive Director" derived from the raw title field on Form 990 Part VII. This does not include CEOs, Presidents, or other top officer titles, which have different compensation distributions. Organizations that use "CEO" as their top role are benchmarked separately in our CEO salary analysis.
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