Annual Survey Methodology
The Annual Survey of Museum-Goers is a survey of museum-goers, not casual visitors or the broader public of non-visitors to museums. The Annual Survey began in 2017; beginning in 2020 it has been fielded in partnership with the American Alliance of Museums.
The Annual Survey is fielded by museums of all types throughout the United States (and sometimes Canada). Participating museums are asked to send a survey request to their contact lists, including email and social media. Each participating museum receives their museum's results via spreadsheet and slide deck, and the aggregate results are analyzed and shared with the museum field. Museums pay a small fee to participate.
Additionally, broader population comparison sampling is fielded each year concurrently with the Annual Survey in order to provide a comparison sample.
The Annual Survey is fielded by museums of all types throughout the United States (and sometimes Canada). Participating museums are asked to send a survey request to their contact lists, including email and social media. Each participating museum receives their museum's results via spreadsheet and slide deck, and the aggregate results are analyzed and shared with the museum field. Museums pay a small fee to participate.
Additionally, broader population comparison sampling is fielded each year concurrently with the Annual Survey in order to provide a comparison sample.
2021 Annual Survey of Museum-Goers
n = 53,217 museum-goers
140 museums participating
2020 Annual Survey of Museum-Goers
n = 38,866 museum-goers
74 museums participating
2019 Annual Survey of Museum-Goers
n = 9,655 museum-goers
21 museums participating
2018 Annual Survey of Museum-Goers
n = 6,153 museum-goers
14 museums participating
2017 Annual Survey of Museum-Goers
n = 6,026 museum-goers
25 museums participating
n = 53,217 museum-goers
140 museums participating
2020 Annual Survey of Museum-Goers
n = 38,866 museum-goers
74 museums participating
2019 Annual Survey of Museum-Goers
n = 9,655 museum-goers
21 museums participating
2018 Annual Survey of Museum-Goers
n = 6,153 museum-goers
14 museums participating
2017 Annual Survey of Museum-Goers
n = 6,026 museum-goers
25 museums participating
Participating Museums
2021
Alexandria Museum of Art
American Civil War Museum
Applewood Estate/ Ruth Mott Foundation
Art Gallery of Windsor
Atlanta History Center
Bainbridge Island Historical Museum
Bard Graduate Center
Barnes Foundation
Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive
Blanton Museum of Art
Carnegie Museums or Pittsburgh
Charles Allis Villa Terrace Museums Inc.
Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum
Chicago History Museum
Chicago Zoological Society
Chrysler Museum of Art
Cincinnati Art Museum
Cincinnati Museum Center
Clark Art Institute
Cleveland Museum of Art
Cleveland Museum of Natural History
Clyfford Still Museum
Colby College Museum of Art
Colorado Spring Fine Arts Center
Columbus Museum of Art
Conner Prairie Museum
Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum
Dallas Holocaust and Human Rights Museum
Decorative Arts Center of Ohio
Denver Botanic Gardens
Denver Zoo
Desert Botanical Garden
Detroit Zoo
Discovery Museum
EarlyWorks Family of Museums
Edgewater Historical Society and Museum
Edith Wharton Restoration, Inc.
Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art
Exploration Place
Exploratorium
Filoli
Florence Griswold Museum
Florida Museum of Natural History
Grand Rapids Art Museum
Green Bay Botanical Garden
Grounds For Sculpture
Harwood Museum of Art
High Desert Museum
Historic Deerfield, Inc.
Historic London Town and Gardens
History Nebraska
HistoryMiami Museum
Hunter Museum of American Art
i.d.e.a. Museum
Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center
Illinois State Museum
Institute of Contemporary Art/Boston
Kentucky Historical Society
Lehigh University Art Galleries
Library of Congress
Litchfield Historical Society
Littleton Museum
Longmont Museum
Louise Wells Cameron Art Museum
Lowe Art Museum
Madison Museum of Contemporary Art
McLean County Historical Society
Meadows Museum
Michener Art Museum
Mid-America Science Museum
Minneapolis Institute of Art
Minnetrista
Mississippi Museum of Art
Morris-Jumel Mansion
Museum of Arts and Design
Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego
Museum of Danish America
Museum of Geology
Museum of Russian Icons
Museum of Ventura County
Mystic Seaport Museum
Naper Settlement
National Gallery of Art
Neville Public Museum
New Britain Museum of American Art
Newport Historical Society
Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art, Utah State University
Norman Rockwell Museum
Ohio History Center
Omaha Children's Museum
Orlando Science Center
Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science
Racine Art Museum Association, Inc.
Reynolda House Museum of American Art
Rhode Island Historical Society
Rochester Museum & Science Center
Rockwood Museum
Roger Tory Peterson Institute
San Bernardino County Museum
Sandy Spring Museum
Santa Barbara Museum of Art
Science Museum of Minnesota
Science Museum Oklahoma
Seattle Aquarium
SFMOMA
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Smithsonian's National Museum of American History
South Carolina State Museum
Space Center Houston
Springfield Museum of Art
Springfield Museums
Stratford Hall
Taft Museum of Art
Tenement Museum
The Africa Center
The Children's Museum of Indianapolis
The Contemporary Jewish Museum
The Frick Pittsburgh
The Henry Ford
The Hyde Collection
The Museum of Russian Art
The New York Botanical Garden
The Perot Museum of Nature and Science
The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza
Thomas Jefferson Fdn (Monticello)
United States Botanic Garden
University of Michigan Museum of Natural History
University of Nebraska State Museum
Vesterheim Norwegian American Museum and Folk Art School
Virginia Museum of Contemporary Art
Virginia Museum of History & Culture
Vulcan Park and Museum
Weisman Art Museum
Wenham Museum
Wexner Center for the Arts
Wichita Art Museum
Wolfsonian–FIU
WonderLab Museum
Worcester Art Museum
2020
Allentown Art Museum
American Writers Museum
Arizona Museum of Natural History
Bard Graduate Center Gallery
Chicago History Museum
Children's Museum of Phoenix
Children's Museum of the Lowcountry
Cincinnati Art Museum
Cincinnati Museum Center
Columbus Museum of Art
Conner Prairie Museum
Denver Botanic Gardens
Denver Zoo
Descanso Gardens
Desert Botanical Garden
Discovery Museum
Everhart Museum
Ford's Theatre Society
Gateway Science Museum
George Eastman Museum
Goldstein Museum of Design
Grand Rapids Art Museum
Heritage Museums & Gardens
Historic London Town and Gardens
History Nebraska
i.d.e.a. Museum
Illinois State Museum
John Ball Zoo
Kalamazoo Institute of Arts
Litchfield Historical Society
Lone Star Flight Museum
Lowe Art Museum
Meadows Museum
Michigan Science Center
Minneapolis Institute of Art
Minnesota Children's Museum
Minnetrista
Mississippi Museum of Art
Monticello (Thomas Jefferson Fdn)
Museum of Latin American Art
Museum of Ventura County
Naper Settlement
National Afro-American Museum and Cultural Center
National Museum of Wildlife Art
National Veterans Memorial and Museum
Neville Public Museum
New Bedford Whaling Museum
Norman Rockwell Museum At
Ohio History Center
Omaha Children's Museum
Pacific Science Center
Pro Football Hall of Fame
Science Museum Oklahoma
Shiloh Museum of Ozark History
Space Center Houston
Stax Museum of American Soul Music
Tampa Bay History Center
Tenement Museum
Tennessee State Museum
The American Civil War Museum
The Children's Museum of the Upstate
The Phillips Collection
The Ringling
The Walters Art Museum
The Wolfsonian-FIU
United States Botanic Garden
Virginia Museum of History & Culture
Vizcaya Museum and Gardens
Washington Pavilion Visual Arts Center
Weisman Art Museum
Wichita Art Museum
Winterthur Museum, Garden, and Library
Wiregrass Museum of Art
Woodland Park Zoo
2019
Abbe Museum
Boston Children's Museum
Columbus Museum of Art
Discovery Museum
George Eastman Museum
Gunston Hall
History Nebraska
Living Computers: Museum + Labs
Minneapolis Institute of Art
National Building Museum
National Veterans Memorial and Museum
Newark Museum
Ohio History Center
Omaha Children's Museum
Pacific Science Center
Science Museum Oklahoma
Tenement Museum
The Phillips Collection
Virginia Museum of History & Culture
Wichita Art Museum
Woodland Park Zoo
2018
Abbe Museum
Columbus Museum of Art
Discovery Place
Glazer Children's Museum
Gunston Hall
Heritage Museum and Gardens
History Nebraska
Living Computers: Museum + Labs
Michigan Science Center
Minnetrista
Naper Settlement
Ohio History Connection
Omaha Children's Museum
Plimoth Plantation
2017
Abbe Museum
Billings Farm & Museum
Children's Museum of Atlanta
Connecticut Landmarks
ExplorationWorks
Frederic Remington Art Museum
Georgia O'Keeffe Museum
Glazer Children's Museum
History Nebraska
KidsQuest Children's Museum
Litchfield Historical Society
Living Computers: Museum + Labs
Louisiana Children's Museum
McWane Science Center
Minneapolis Institute of Art
Michigan Science Center
Minnetrista
Mississippi Museum of Art
Monmouth County Historical Association
Ohio History Connection
Peoria PlayHouse Children's Museum
Powerhouse Science Center
Reynolda House Museum
Washington County Museum of Fine Arts
York County History Center
2021
Alexandria Museum of Art
American Civil War Museum
Applewood Estate/ Ruth Mott Foundation
Art Gallery of Windsor
Atlanta History Center
Bainbridge Island Historical Museum
Bard Graduate Center
Barnes Foundation
Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive
Blanton Museum of Art
Carnegie Museums or Pittsburgh
Charles Allis Villa Terrace Museums Inc.
Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum
Chicago History Museum
Chicago Zoological Society
Chrysler Museum of Art
Cincinnati Art Museum
Cincinnati Museum Center
Clark Art Institute
Cleveland Museum of Art
Cleveland Museum of Natural History
Clyfford Still Museum
Colby College Museum of Art
Colorado Spring Fine Arts Center
Columbus Museum of Art
Conner Prairie Museum
Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum
Dallas Holocaust and Human Rights Museum
Decorative Arts Center of Ohio
Denver Botanic Gardens
Denver Zoo
Desert Botanical Garden
Detroit Zoo
Discovery Museum
EarlyWorks Family of Museums
Edgewater Historical Society and Museum
Edith Wharton Restoration, Inc.
Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art
Exploration Place
Exploratorium
Filoli
Florence Griswold Museum
Florida Museum of Natural History
Grand Rapids Art Museum
Green Bay Botanical Garden
Grounds For Sculpture
Harwood Museum of Art
High Desert Museum
Historic Deerfield, Inc.
Historic London Town and Gardens
History Nebraska
HistoryMiami Museum
Hunter Museum of American Art
i.d.e.a. Museum
Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center
Illinois State Museum
Institute of Contemporary Art/Boston
Kentucky Historical Society
Lehigh University Art Galleries
Library of Congress
Litchfield Historical Society
Littleton Museum
Longmont Museum
Louise Wells Cameron Art Museum
Lowe Art Museum
Madison Museum of Contemporary Art
McLean County Historical Society
Meadows Museum
Michener Art Museum
Mid-America Science Museum
Minneapolis Institute of Art
Minnetrista
Mississippi Museum of Art
Morris-Jumel Mansion
Museum of Arts and Design
Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego
Museum of Danish America
Museum of Geology
Museum of Russian Icons
Museum of Ventura County
Mystic Seaport Museum
Naper Settlement
National Gallery of Art
Neville Public Museum
New Britain Museum of American Art
Newport Historical Society
Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art, Utah State University
Norman Rockwell Museum
Ohio History Center
Omaha Children's Museum
Orlando Science Center
Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum of Science
Racine Art Museum Association, Inc.
Reynolda House Museum of American Art
Rhode Island Historical Society
Rochester Museum & Science Center
Rockwood Museum
Roger Tory Peterson Institute
San Bernardino County Museum
Sandy Spring Museum
Santa Barbara Museum of Art
Science Museum of Minnesota
Science Museum Oklahoma
Seattle Aquarium
SFMOMA
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Smithsonian's National Museum of American History
South Carolina State Museum
Space Center Houston
Springfield Museum of Art
Springfield Museums
Stratford Hall
Taft Museum of Art
Tenement Museum
The Africa Center
The Children's Museum of Indianapolis
The Contemporary Jewish Museum
The Frick Pittsburgh
The Henry Ford
The Hyde Collection
The Museum of Russian Art
The New York Botanical Garden
The Perot Museum of Nature and Science
The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza
Thomas Jefferson Fdn (Monticello)
United States Botanic Garden
University of Michigan Museum of Natural History
University of Nebraska State Museum
Vesterheim Norwegian American Museum and Folk Art School
Virginia Museum of Contemporary Art
Virginia Museum of History & Culture
Vulcan Park and Museum
Weisman Art Museum
Wenham Museum
Wexner Center for the Arts
Wichita Art Museum
Wolfsonian–FIU
WonderLab Museum
Worcester Art Museum
2020
Allentown Art Museum
American Writers Museum
Arizona Museum of Natural History
Bard Graduate Center Gallery
Chicago History Museum
Children's Museum of Phoenix
Children's Museum of the Lowcountry
Cincinnati Art Museum
Cincinnati Museum Center
Columbus Museum of Art
Conner Prairie Museum
Denver Botanic Gardens
Denver Zoo
Descanso Gardens
Desert Botanical Garden
Discovery Museum
Everhart Museum
Ford's Theatre Society
Gateway Science Museum
George Eastman Museum
Goldstein Museum of Design
Grand Rapids Art Museum
Heritage Museums & Gardens
Historic London Town and Gardens
History Nebraska
i.d.e.a. Museum
Illinois State Museum
John Ball Zoo
Kalamazoo Institute of Arts
Litchfield Historical Society
Lone Star Flight Museum
Lowe Art Museum
Meadows Museum
Michigan Science Center
Minneapolis Institute of Art
Minnesota Children's Museum
Minnetrista
Mississippi Museum of Art
Monticello (Thomas Jefferson Fdn)
Museum of Latin American Art
Museum of Ventura County
Naper Settlement
National Afro-American Museum and Cultural Center
National Museum of Wildlife Art
National Veterans Memorial and Museum
Neville Public Museum
New Bedford Whaling Museum
Norman Rockwell Museum At
Ohio History Center
Omaha Children's Museum
Pacific Science Center
Pro Football Hall of Fame
Science Museum Oklahoma
Shiloh Museum of Ozark History
Space Center Houston
Stax Museum of American Soul Music
Tampa Bay History Center
Tenement Museum
Tennessee State Museum
The American Civil War Museum
The Children's Museum of the Upstate
The Phillips Collection
The Ringling
The Walters Art Museum
The Wolfsonian-FIU
United States Botanic Garden
Virginia Museum of History & Culture
Vizcaya Museum and Gardens
Washington Pavilion Visual Arts Center
Weisman Art Museum
Wichita Art Museum
Winterthur Museum, Garden, and Library
Wiregrass Museum of Art
Woodland Park Zoo
2019
Abbe Museum
Boston Children's Museum
Columbus Museum of Art
Discovery Museum
George Eastman Museum
Gunston Hall
History Nebraska
Living Computers: Museum + Labs
Minneapolis Institute of Art
National Building Museum
National Veterans Memorial and Museum
Newark Museum
Ohio History Center
Omaha Children's Museum
Pacific Science Center
Science Museum Oklahoma
Tenement Museum
The Phillips Collection
Virginia Museum of History & Culture
Wichita Art Museum
Woodland Park Zoo
2018
Abbe Museum
Columbus Museum of Art
Discovery Place
Glazer Children's Museum
Gunston Hall
Heritage Museum and Gardens
History Nebraska
Living Computers: Museum + Labs
Michigan Science Center
Minnetrista
Naper Settlement
Ohio History Connection
Omaha Children's Museum
Plimoth Plantation
2017
Abbe Museum
Billings Farm & Museum
Children's Museum of Atlanta
Connecticut Landmarks
ExplorationWorks
Frederic Remington Art Museum
Georgia O'Keeffe Museum
Glazer Children's Museum
History Nebraska
KidsQuest Children's Museum
Litchfield Historical Society
Living Computers: Museum + Labs
Louisiana Children's Museum
McWane Science Center
Minneapolis Institute of Art
Michigan Science Center
Minnetrista
Mississippi Museum of Art
Monmouth County Historical Association
Ohio History Connection
Peoria PlayHouse Children's Museum
Powerhouse Science Center
Reynolda House Museum
Washington County Museum of Fine Arts
York County History Center
Survey bias: All surveys have some degree of survey bias (except, perhaps, the US Census Bureau). Blind spots. No survey is perfect. The Annual Survey of Museum-Goers represents only a small sliver of the US population: those that visit museums on a regular basis. It does not represent casual visitors or non-visitors. Broader population samples are far better for assessing the broader population, but they too have a blind spot. That is, there is a large segment of the population that is extremely difficult to survey. Surveys simply never reach them. And while we could weight those sample for, say, income or education (since low-income, low-education households tend to be under-represented even in broader-population samples), that will only tell about those individuals who the survey reached. Having a survey reach you, and then responding to it, is an indicator of broader engagement with the world, and those that are never surveyed may not be as engaged with the world (for lots of valid reasons), and thus have different behaviors and attitudes. Thus, when looking at results from any survey, including those fielded by Wilkening Consulting, take into consideration how large that blind spot is, and be cautious about assuming the results are truly representative of the broader population.