Is There a Floor for Association CEO Salaries?

The statistical bottom wage for an association CEO is around the 10th percentile of peer organizations, according to new research from ASAE’s Executive Compensation Study (opens in a new tab) (ECS) team. 

For a chief staff executive running an organization with annual revenue between $3.5 million and $5 million, that’s $177,035. For CEOs leading larger groups —$7.5 million to $10 million in revenue—it’s $237,814.

The 10th percentile—where 90 percent of CEOs are paid more—is a point where compensation distribution slows and begins to cluster, earning it the moniker “de facto minimum wage.”

In associations with annual revenue between $5 million and $7.5 million, the clustering is so close that half of CEO salaries below the 10th percentile are within $20,000. In the $7.5 million to $10 million revenue category, it’s even more condensed: more than half of CEO salaries below the de facto minimum wage are within $15,000. 

ECS researchers analyzed 2021 data from more than 2,600 national associations that reported paying a full-time chief executive a full-year salary. (2021 is the latest dataset where the majority of organizations have disclosed those details.)

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10th Percentile Salary By Revenue Category

Organization size has the biggest influence on CEO compensation. Below shows the effect annual revenue has on CEO salary at the 10th percentile. Salary figures are the combination of base and bonus pay in 2021.