Average personnel and non-personnel expenses have plateaued after significant reductions in 2020 and 2021. Expenses in both categories remain below pre-pandemic levels.
Amidst this overall decline in average spending, non-personnel expenses have seen more significant reductions since 2019, with a 21% decline contrasted with a 11% decline for personnel. Early 2025 data show continued cuts in non-personnel spending and a modest 6% growth in personnel spending.
In 2020, the share of personnel expenses dedicated to artists fell from 25% to 21% of total personnel spending. Since 2020, the share of overall expenses for artistic positions has remained around this level.
From 2019 to 2025, artist expenses fell by 32%, contrasted with a 16% decline in other personnel expenses. Preliminary data from 2025 show more modest decreases for both artist and other personnel expenses.
Divergence in patterns between total personnel expenses shown above and non-artistis personnel expenses are due to differing calculation methods. Other (non-artist) personnel expenses is calculated as total personnel expenses less artist expenses, to understand the allocation of spending. Total personnel expenses and artist expenses are presented as organization level averages. See the methodology section for more details.
As personnel spending continues to recover, average staff counts have continued to hover slightly below pre-pandemic levels for the last three years. After a slight dip in 2024, modest growth in staff counts shown in early 2025 results may point to cautious workforce expansion.