In 2005 the arts industry in New York City generated:

• An economic impact of $21.2 billion 
• 160,000 jobs
• $8.2 billion in wages
• $904 million in taxes to the city

40 million visits were made in 2005 to New York City's cultural attractions which generated:

• An economic impact of $5.4 billion
• 55,700 job
• $1.9 billion in wages
• $369 million in taxes to the city

Source: Arts as an Industry: Their Economic Impact on New York City and New York State (2007)

Nonprofit cultural venues draw an audience of almost 26 million people--many more than the numbers going to Broadway theaters and all live commercial sporting events in the city from Yankee Stadium to Aqueduct combined.

Source: NYC Arts Audiences: Attendance at NYC's Cultural Venues (2005)

From 1997 to 2002, capital expenditures of $1.8 billion generated $2.3 billion in total economic impact, including:

• $512 million in wages
• 2,255 full-time equivalent jobs in each of the six years
• $36 million in personal income, sales and corporate taxes to the City

Source: Culture Builds New York: The Economic Impact of Capital Spending at New York City's Cultural Institutions, 2003--2010 (Alliance for the Arts, 2007)