Anatomy of a ticket

After you pay, where does your money go? Here’s a look at the costs.

By Maggie Samways

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Also see: The New York Yankees | Figurines @ Mercury Lounge | The Nutcracker @ New York City Ballet | La Traviata @ The Metropolitan Opera | Jump @ Union Square Theatre

Let’s say you give the full suggested donation of $20. You do-gooder, you. Of its total 2006 operating expenses of $183.3 million, the museum spent:

	29% on curatorial expenses
	17% on maintaining the building (lots of humidifiers?)
	15% on guardianship
	12% on administrative costs
	7% on membership and development
	7% on education and libraries
	7% on heat, light and power, and interest
	6% on funding special exhibitions

Fun fact: Admission fees account for 12% of the museum’s total revenues. The museum’s largest source of revenue is endowments, clocking in at 30%. A close second are gifts and grants, at 26%.

Source: Annual report, 2006

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Time Out New York / Issue 630 : Oct 25–31, 2007

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Comments

Posted by Susan C Bourque on Sat, Nov 03, 07, at 3:01pm

Andrew Zimbalist is Professor of Economics at Smith College, not Princeton University. I have no doubts that Princeton would love to claim him, but he is ours and we are proud of his scholarship. Please make the correction.

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