U.S. Nonprofit President Salary:
2024 Benchmarks
The median U.S. nonprofit president earns $44,660 per year based on 33,067 organizations filing IRS Form 990 for tax year 2024. "President" is the second most common title in 990 filings after board member, used across organizations ranging from small volunteer-led groups to billion-dollar health systems. Here is what the data shows.
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Median President Salary
$44,660
25th Percentile
$9,600
75th Percentile
$146,726
Data Points
33,067
Tax year 2024 data includes 33,067 organizations reporting a president with compensation greater than $0. "President" is the second most common title in Form 990 filings (2.2 million total records), but many report $0 compensation because the role is unpaid or honorary. This analysis includes only compensated presidents. We continuously update our datasets as new filings become available from the IRS.
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President Salary by Organization Budget Size
Budget size is the strongest predictor of president compensation. Presidents at organizations with budgets over $25M earn nearly 18 times the median at sub-$1M organizations. The wide gap reflects that "President" spans unpaid volunteer leaders at small orgs to full-time executives at large health systems and universities. Based on 33,067 president compensation records from tax year 2024 Form 990 filings.
| Budget Size | Median Salary | 25th Pctl | 75th Pctl | # Orgs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Under $1M | $21,738 | $5,649 | $62,700 | 20,777 |
| $1M–$5M | $125,000 | $43,488 | $219,086 | 7,100 |
| $5M–$10M | $200,000 | $105,154 | $325,206 | 1,825 |
| $10M–$25M | $250,000 | $113,932 | $391,513 | 1,521 |
| $25M+ | $395,958 | $137,146 | $760,740 | 1,844 |
| Total | 33,067 |
Source: IRS Form 990 electronically filed returns, Tax year 2024. All 33,067 compensated president records included.. 5 categories shown.
Get more data →President Salary by State (Top 10)
Washington D.C. leads by a wide margin, reflecting the concentration of national associations, advocacy organizations, and trade groups headquartered in the capital. The large gap between D.C. and other states is driven by both the size and type of organizations using the "President" title. Based on states with 100+ president records in tax year 2024.
| State | Median Salary | 25th Pctl | 75th Pctl | # Orgs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Washington D.C. | $214,548 | $92,165 | $384,006 | 604 |
| Virginia | $82,175 | $17,975 | $251,670 | 885 |
| New York | $60,000 | $11,831 | $240,062 | 2,567 |
| Texas | $50,000 | $15,000 | $131,692 | 2,031 |
| California | $49,450 | $12,500 | $138,680 | 3,354 |
| Illinois | $45,360 | $8,000 | $142,159 | 1,370 |
| Massachusetts | $33,750 | $6,601 | $137,238 | 1,055 |
| Pennsylvania | $33,383 | $5,901 | $136,631 | 1,481 |
| Washington | $31,200 | $8,667 | $145,633 | 767 |
| New Jersey | $24,502 | $3,500 | $106,358 | 965 |
| Total | 15,079 |
Source: IRS Form 990 electronically filed returns, Tax year 2024. States with 100+ compensated president records shown.. 10 categories shown.
Get more data →President Salary by Sector (Top 8)
Housing & shelter and healthcare organizations pay the highest president salaries, reflecting the scale and complexity of these sectors. Healthcare presidents earn a mean of $750,264 — far above the median of $205,117 — because the sector includes hospital system presidents earning well into seven figures. Based on NTEE classification of 2024 Form 990 filings.
| Sector (NTEE) | Median Salary | Mean Salary | # Orgs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing & Shelter | $219,013 | $286,675 | 834 |
| Healthcare | $205,117 | $750,264 | 1,239 |
| Community Improvement | $125,000 | $197,217 | 1,103 |
| Environment | $100,949 | $140,409 | 396 |
| Public & Societal Benefit | $97,543 | $226,379 | 425 |
| Human Services | $63,587 | $124,340 | 2,429 |
| International | $60,000 | $104,551 | 676 |
| Education | $55,205 | $120,644 | 1,968 |
| Total | 9,070 |
Source: IRS Form 990 electronically filed returns, Tax year 2024. 8 categories shown.
Get more data →Understanding the "President" Title in Nonprofits
Why this title has the widest compensation range of any nonprofit role.
"President" is the most heterogeneous title in the nonprofit sector. It covers volunteer board presidents at small community organizations who earn $5,000 or less, full-time executive leaders at mid-size nonprofits earning $100,000–$250,000, and hospital system or university presidents earning over $1 million. This diversity makes the overall median ($44,660) less useful as a benchmark than the budget-tier breakdowns below.
The Mean-Median Gap Tells the Story
The mean president salary ($141,772) is more than three times the median ($44,660). This is the largest mean-median gap of any nonprofit title we track, and it signals extreme right skew — a small number of very high earners (hospital and university presidents) pulling the average far above what most presidents earn.
Budget Size
The single largest predictor. Presidents at $25M+ organizations earn a median of $395,958, nearly 18 times the $21,738 median at sub-$1M organizations. Most presidents (64%) work at organizations with budgets under $1M.
Geography
D.C. presidents earn a median of $214,548 — nearly 5 times the national median. This reflects the concentration of national associations and advocacy organizations in the capital, which tend to be larger and use "President" as their top executive title.
Sector
Healthcare presidents earn the highest mean ($750,264) of any sector, driven by hospital system leaders. Housing & shelter has the highest median ($219,013), reflecting consistently high compensation across the sector.
President vs. CEO vs. ED
The median president earns $44,660, compared to $207,708 for CEOs and $86,580 for executive directors. But this comparison is misleading — 64% of presidents are at sub-$1M orgs, compared to 29% of CEOs. At the $25M+ tier, presidents ($395,958) earn more than CEOs ($363,000).
Who Uses the "President" Title?
The title maps to very different roles depending on organization size and type.
At small organizations (under $1M), "President" typically refers to a board president who receives modest compensation or a stipend. At mid-size organizations ($1M–$10M), it usually designates the top paid executive — equivalent to a CEO or executive director. At large organizations ($25M+), especially hospitals, universities, and national associations, "President" denotes a senior executive often overseeing hundreds or thousands of employees.
Small Orgs (Under $1M)
Median: $21,738. Often a board president receiving a stipend, or a part-time executive leader. 64% of all president records fall in this tier.
Mid-Size ($1M–$10M)
Median: $125,000–$200,000. Full-time executive leaders. The title is functionally equivalent to CEO or ED at these organizations.
Large Orgs ($25M+)
Median: $395,958. Full-time executives at hospitals, universities, and national organizations. The 75th percentile reaches $760,097.
How to Benchmark President Compensation
The IRS requires that president 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 president pay. A $500K organization should not benchmark against $5M organizations.
Sector
Match by NTEE category. A healthcare president and an arts president at the same budget have very different market rates — $205,117 vs. roughly $30,000 at the median.
Geography
Compare within your state or metro area. D.C. presidents earn nearly 5 times the national median.
Role Scope
Clarify whether your president is a volunteer board chair, a part-time executive, or a full-time organizational leader. The same title covers all three.
25th–75th
The reasonable range
President 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
33,067 organizations
Data Source
IRS Form 990 electronically filed returns
Period
Tax year 2024
Presidents are identified by the normalized title "President" from Part VII of Form 990. Where an organization reports multiple presidents, we use the highest-compensated individual. Total compensation includes reportable compensation from the organization, related organizations, and other compensation (benefits, deferred comp, nontaxable fringe). Only records with total compensation greater than $0 are included. The full dataset includes 2.2 million president records, but the majority report $0 compensation (unpaid board presidents).
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 President per Organization
Where an organization reports multiple people with a President title, we use the highest-compensated individual. This handles co-president arrangements and transitions (outgoing + incoming in the same filing year) and provides the cleanest benchmark.
Compensated Presidents Only
We exclude presidents reporting $0 total compensation. Many organizations list their board president on Form 990 Part VII with no compensation. Including these would skew the data toward zero. Our analysis focuses on presidents who receive meaningful compensation for their role.
Title Matching
Presidents are identified by the normalized title "President" derived from the raw title field on Form 990 Part VII. This does not include CEOs, Executive Directors, Board Chairs, or Vice Presidents, which have different compensation distributions and are benchmarked separately.
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