For museum professionals striving to make data-informed decisions, 2025 brought a bevy of research reports on our field and the wider arts and culture sector. Since you likely didn’t have time to read them all, I wanted to highlight some key insights from a selection of the reports I reviewed or worked on over the past year in my role as AAM’s Research & Data Manager.

Collaboration for Ongoing Visitor Experience Studies

Last year’s annual report from the Collaboration for Ongoing Visitor Experience Studies (COVES) draws insights from more than forty thousand visitor surveys across more than eighty participating institutions. The results show that the most common motivations for visitors to art museums are a) social enjoyment, and b) learning and pursuing interests. For visitors to “science+” museums (a broad category including science, natural history, children’s, and history museums), visitors are most commonly motivated by a) spending time together as a group or family, and b) fun and entertainment for group members.

These findings highlight that many visitors come to museums for social reasons, although the report notes that “adult-only groups are more likely to select personal motivations.” It is also notable that art museums are more likely to draw adults-only visitor groups (83 percent) as compared to science+ museums (33 percent), which are more likely to attract groups with children. These findings may prompt your museum to consider what motivations drive visitors to your own institution, and how your museum can more fully support these visitor goals.

Annual Survey of Museum-Goers

Results from the Annual Survey of Museum-Goers from AAM and Wilkening Consulting also show the importance of social experiences in museums. About one-third (31 percent) of frequent museum-goers say they only visit museums when they’re with family or friends, while 30 percent say they occasionally go on their own but mostly visit with others. Casual and sporadic museum-goers are even more likely to say they only visit museums when they’re with family or friends (43 percent and 45 percent respectively).

Asked what activities or amenities help them connect with their groups the best, respondents who “only,” “mostly,” or “sometimes” visit museums with others most commonly say simply exploring the exhibitions. Frequent museum-goers emphasize spots to eat or have a beverage and chat (important to 61 percent of respondents), outdoor spaces to relax and decompress (51 percent), places to sit and chat (47 percent), and scheduled events they can attend with their group (45 percent). Meanwhile, younger adults are more likely to seek interactive experiences in museums than older adults, such as places to create something together or play games and challenges together. Ensuring that your museum offers these supports for a quality social experience helps to make visits a success for frequent and sporadic visitors alike. (Help contribute to next year’s insights by signing up for the 2026 Annual Survey of Museum-Goers.)

Workplace Equity and Organizational Culture in US Art Museums

The 2025 Report from Museums Moving Forward gives a window into the health of the art museum workforce. The survey found that art museum staff are more satisfied with their careers today than they were in 2023 by most metrics, an encouraging improvement. Three-quarters (74 percent) of staff report enjoying their day-to-day work, and 74 percent also feel their work has a sense of purpose and dignity. However, “more than half (54%)…have considered leaving the museum field altogether,” primarily motivated by “low pay, burnout, and lack of growth opportunities.” Museums hoping to retain more staff for longer may benefit from focusing on these areas of need.

Snapshot of United States Museums

AAM’s annual Snapshot of United States Museums captures a bird’s-eye view of the field, allowing museums to benchmark against fieldwide performance and evaluate how to adapt to today’s challenging environment. 2025’s Snapshot reported that museums across the country are facing a convergence of financial pressures and declining attendance even as they continue serving as vital community anchors. More than half of museums (55 percent) are seeing fewer visitors than in 2019, and nearly one-third (29 percent) report decreased attendance in 2025 due to weakened travel and tourism and economic uncertainty. Pandemic recovery remains uneven across the field, as only half of museums (52 percent) report that their bottom line in 2024 was stronger than pre-pandemic in 2019.

In this challenging financial environment, museums are exploring many new approaches to generating revenue. Within the last two years, over half (55 percent) have meaningfully increased efforts to secure corporate sponsorships or brand partnerships. Many have also created or revamped membership programs (46 percent), expanded facility rentals or private events (43 percent), or added fee-based public programs, workshops, or events (41 percent).

Unlocking Workforce Well-Being in Arts and Culture

A report from SMU DataArts highlights the importance of inclusion for arts and culture organizations, reporting that “inclusion is an important driver of retention, job satisfaction and likelihood to recommend an employer.” This is consistently true across demographic groups. The report examines five components that contribute to an inclusive workplace, including the integration of differences, including staff in decision-making, and fostering a sense of belonging. As the concept of inclusion becomes increasingly politicized, data-driven evidence of the benefits of inclusion for staff and organizations is more important than ever.

AAMD Salary Survey

The Association of Art Museum Directors’ Salary Survey is back after a one-year hiatus with an expanded list of art museum jobs, refreshed job descriptions and titles, and other improvements to this in-depth report. This resource is a valuable tool for institutions and individuals looking to benchmark art museum salaries by role, institution budget, region, and population size.

Trust in Nonprofits and Philanthropy

The Trust in Nonprofits and Philanthropy report from Independent Sector shares the results of a public opinion poll of over three thousand American adults. Trust in nonprofits remains high, with a majority (57 percent) of respondents expressing high levels of trust in nonprofit organizations to “do what is right.” This is consistent with 2024 reporting, and is a higher level of trust than is shown for corporations, small businesses, or government at the local, state, or federal level. Levels of public trust in museums, theaters, and orchestras is almost exactly the same as nonprofits overall, at 56 percent. This public trust remains a critical resource and responsibility for museums, the majority of which are nonprofits.

It is also notable that 68 percent of survey respondents “believe nonprofits losing federal funding will have a negative impact on communities,” a valuable indicator of public understanding as many museums lost federal funds in 2025.

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If you find this data useful to your decision making, keep an eye out for additional research coming in 2026 and beyond! Much of this research is only possible with the participation of museums and museum professionals, and your involvement is tremendously important. Here’s to a data-informed 2026!