National Geographic Society CEO salary and executive pay
National Geographic Society paid its CEO, Jill Tiefenthaler, $1,571,576 for the fiscal year ending December 2025. That is down $506,548 (24.4%) from the fiscal year ending December 2024. Total revenue on that return was $340,516,012, up 62.7% from $209,304,518 for the fiscal year ending December 2024. National Geographic Society ranks 19th of 45 major nonprofits on this site by CEO pay. National Geographic Society has 4 Form 990 returns on record, for fiscal years ending 2022 to 2025.
Last updated from IRS e-file data. EIN 53-0193519, Washington, DC.
CEO, fiscal year ending December 2025
$1,571,576
- Total revenue
- $340,516,012
- CEO pay vs. peers
- Higher than 55%
Source: Form 990, fiscal year ending December 2025, IRS object ID 202622039349300962.View the filing
Peers: the 207 other organizations on this site with revenue of $50 million to $500 million. Ranked 94th of 208 by top pay as a share of revenue. Pay is 0.46% of revenue, our calculation from the same return. Revenue is Part I, line 12; peers are compared on their latest full-year returns.
This is the nonprofit society. National Geographic Partners, the media business, is a joint venture with Disney and does not file a Form 990.
Highest-paid people on the latest return
On the latest return, 11 people were paid more than $500,000, 2 of them more than $1 million.
| Name and title | Total |
|---|---|
| Jill Tiefenthaler CEO CEO | $1,571,576 |
| Kristi CraigCHIEF INVESTMENT OFFICER | $1,346,722 |
| Darien WrightCFO & COO | $679,712 |
| Kara Ramirez MullinsCHIEF ADVANCEMENT OFFICER | $676,783 |
| Sumeet SeamCHIEF LEGAL OFFICER | $670,340 |
Also paid on the latest return: John Coombe (DIRECTOR, INVESTMENTS), $650,822; Crystal Brown (CHIEF COMMUNICATIONS OFFICER), $594,750; Ian Miller (CHIEF SCIENCE & INNOVATION OFFICER), $591,022; Shannon Bartlett (CHIEF COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT & SOCIAL), $566,944; Mara Dell (CHIEF HUMAN RESOURCES OFFICER), $517,938; Emily Dunham (CHIEF CAMPUS AND EXPERIENCES), $502,373; Enric Sala (EXPLORER IN RESIDENCE), $472,954; Kim Waldron (CHIEF OF STAFF & PROGRAM ALIGNMENT), $464,474; Deborah Grayson (CHIEF EDUCATION OFFICER), $451,422; Kaitlin Yarnall (CHIEF STORYTELLING OFFICER & SVP), $450,387; Alex Moen (CHIEF EXPLORER & ENGAGEMENT OFFICER), $437,385; Jason Southern (CHIEF TECHNOLOGY OFFICER), $429,135; Angela Taylor (FORMER INTERIM CFO), $374,935; Michael Ulica (FORMER PRESIDENT/COO/TREASURER), $334,476; Sandesh Kadur (TRUSTEE), $48,500.
Also listed in Part VII of the latest return, with no pay reported: Afsaneh Beschloss (TRUSTEE), Angel Cabrera (TRUSTEE), Anthony A Williams (TRUSTEE), Brendan P Bechtel (TRUSTEE), Claudia Madrazo (TRUSTEE), Dambisa Moyo (TRUSTEE), David Marriott (TRUSTEE), Deborah Lehr (TRUSTEE), Dina Powell McCormick (TRUSTEE), Ellen R Stofan (TRUSTEE), Evan G Greenberg (TRUSTEE), Frederick J Ryan Jr (TRUSTEE), Henry Ellenbogen (TRUSTEE), Jean Case (CHAIRMAN), John K Delaney (TRUSTEE), Joseph M Desimone (TRUSTEE), Kate Brandt (TRUSTEE), Katherine Bradley (VICE CHAIRMAN), Kevin J Maroni (VICE CHAIRMAN), Mark Moore (TRUSTEE), Nancy Pfund (TRUSTEE), Rajiv Shah (TRUSTEE), Strive Masiyiwa (TRUSTEE).
CEO pay by year
Each row is the CEO on that year's return.
| Fiscal year ending | Name and title | Total | Revenue | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 2025 | Jill Tiefenthaler CEO CEO | $1,571,576 | $340,516,012 | Filing |
| Dec 2024 | Jill Tiefenthaler CEO CEO | $2,078,124 | $209,304,518 | Filing |
| Dec 2023 | Jill Tiefenthaler CEO CEO | $1,378,001 | $231,981,168 | Filing |
| Dec 2022 | Jill Tiefenthaler CEO CEO | $1,361,625 | $157,560,446 | Filing |
How this pay was reported
The parts of each total, as reported on the return for the fiscal year ending December 2025.
Source: Form 990, fiscal year ending December 2025, IRS object ID 202622039349300962.View the filing
| Part VII | Schedule J | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name and title | From org | Other | Base | Bonus | Other | Deferred | Nontaxable | Total |
| Jill TiefenthalerCEO | $1,531,988 | $39,588 | $1,147,701 | $372,803 | $11,484 | $11,750 | $27,838 | $1,571,576 |
| Kristi CraigCHIEF INVESTMENT OFFICER | $1,307,860 | $38,862 | $655,243 | $646,000 | $6,617 | $11,750 | $27,112 | $1,346,722 |
| Darien WrightCFO & COO | $665,546 | $14,166 | $658,989 | $0 | $6,557 | $11,750 | $2,416 | $679,712 |
| Kara Ramirez MullinsCHIEF ADVANCEMENT OFFICER | $639,317 | $37,466 | $635,899 | $0 | $3,418 | $11,750 | $25,716 | $676,783 |
| Sumeet SeamCHIEF LEGAL OFFICER | $631,612 | $38,728 | $618,288 | $10,000 | $3,324 | $11,750 | $26,978 | $670,340 |
These figures come from National Geographic Society's Form 990 returns, as the IRS publishes them. The methodology page explains how they're chosen. To report an error, email corrections@ceopaycheck.com.
How National Geographic Society compares
Ranked 19th of 45 major nonprofits by CEO pay.
- Previous in this ranking: 18th, PBS, $1,602,897
- Next in this ranking: 20th, ALSAC (St. Jude fundraising), $1,564,611
Closest in revenue among organizations in the same revenue band:
- United Israel Appeal$275,568 (highest-paid), fiscal year ending Jun 2025
UJA-Federation of New York$1,022,711 (CEO), fiscal year ending Jun 2025- International Fellowship of Christians & Jews$931,098 (CEO), fiscal year ending Dec 2024
Institute of International Education$948,481 (CEO), fiscal year ending Sep 2025
National Youth Advocate Program$1,999,291 (CEO), fiscal year ending Dec 2025
Common questions
Jill Tiefenthaler (CEO) was paid $1,571,576 for the fiscal year ending December 2025: $1,531,988 from National Geographic Society and $39,588 in other compensation (Part VII columns D and F).
The CEO, Jill Tiefenthaler, was the highest-paid person on the latest return, at $1,571,576.
This is the nonprofit society. National Geographic Partners, the media business, is a joint venture with Disney and does not file a Form 990.
National Geographic Society paid its CEO, Jill Tiefenthaler, $1,571,576 for the fiscal year ending December 2025. That is down $506,548 (24.4%) from the fiscal year ending December 2024. The earliest return on record is for the fiscal year ending December 2022, when the CEO was Jill Tiefenthaler, paid $1,361,625. By fiscal year end: December 2022, $1,361,625 (Jill Tiefenthaler); December 2023, $1,378,001; December 2024, $2,078,124; December 2025, $1,571,576.
National Geographic Society's return for the fiscal year ending December 2025 reports total expenses of $222,560,462 and total revenue of $340,516,012 (Part I, lines 18 and 12), so revenue exceeded expenses by $117,955,550. Expenses were $220,522,212 for the fiscal year ending December 2024, so they rose 0.9%. The CEO's pay of $1,571,576 equals 0.71% of expenses, our calculation.
From the 4 Form 990 returns National Geographic Society filed with the IRS for fiscal years ending 2022 to 2025. The latest full-year return was filed on July 22, 2026. Schedule J of the fiscal year ending December 2025 return breaks down pay for all 5 people in the pay breakdown above.