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Women CEOs at 73 Cents: Pay Equity Stalls at Sector's Largest Organizations

The analysis draws on 2024 IRS Forms 990 and 990-EZ filings from nearly 120,000 tax-exempt organizations, excluding private foundations.

The numerical breakdown

The overall gender pay gap in median CEO compensation has narrowed over the past decade, from 69 cents on the dollar in 2014 to 73 cents in 2024. The rate of change, however, has plateaued. Compensation reached 73 cents in 2021, fell back to 72 cents in 2022, and has held at 73 cents in both 2023 and 2024.

The data reveals a divergence by organizational size. Women CEOs at the smallest nonprofits (budgets under $250,000) earned 96 cents for every dollar paid to men in 2024, up from 92 cents in 2014. At the largest organizations (budgets exceeding $50 million), the gap widened: women CEOs earned 75 cents per dollar in 2024, down from 77 cents a decade earlier.

Representation tracks compensation. Women held 31% of CEO positions at the largest nonprofits in 2024, up from 20% in 2014. At organizations with budgets of $500,000 or less, women's share of CEO roles ranges from 58% to 62%.

Credentials and career architecture

The compensation data lands alongside a sector talent profile published by Darden Report Online, which documented the career trajectory of Alyssa Tulabut (MBA/MPP '24), now a consultant at The Bridgespan Group. Tulabut's prior five-year tenure at the Southeast Asia Resource Action Center, followed by a joint MBA and Master of Public Policy at the University of Virginia, illustrates one pathway into the consulting tier that advises nonprofits, philanthropists, and impact investors.

That pathway — five years of direct service, then a dual-degree credential addressing both business and policy fluency — corresponds to one of the structural responses to the compensation plateau: professionals seeking advisory roles that sit at the intersection of nonprofit operations, government funding, and private capital.

What to track

• Budget-band parity: The $250K–$50M middle segment, where the pay gap trajectory was not fully detailed in the 2026 report. Run a Candid dashboard query for CEO compensation ratios in the $1M–$10M and $10M–$50M brackets.
• CEO pipeline metrics: Map the 31% representation figure at the largest NYC nonprofits against the 58–62% baseline at smaller organizations. Identify which NYC institutions with budgets above $50M have crossed or remain below the 31% threshold.
• Compensation audit cadence: With the ratio now flat for two consecutive reporting years, flag any 2025 interim filings that signal direction change at the largest organization tier.
• Credential premium: Cross-reference NYC nonprofit leadership job postings requiring MBA, MPP, or joint degrees against salary disclosures in 990 filings to quantify the wage differential between dual-credentialed and single-credentialed executives.