Number of visits to Smithsonian museums and institutions in the U.S. 1970-2024

Total attendance at Smithsonian museums and institutions declined by five percent in 2024 over the previous year. Overall, the number of visits remained below the figures reported before the COVID-19 pandemic, totaling 16.8 million in 2024.

What is the Smithsonian?

The Smithsonian is a group of museums and research centers run by the U.S. government and mostly based in the District of Columbia. Public entry to all Smithsonian museums is free, with funds being provided through federal budget appropriations and donations. In 2024, the National Museum of Natural History topped the ranking of the most visited Smithsonian institutions, attracting almost four million visitors.

What are the most visited art museums in the U.S.?

The Smithsonian is by far the largest not-for-profit cultural institution in the United States, with revenue of nearly two billion U.S. dollars in 2023. That said, New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art and the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. had higher visitor numbers than most Smithsonian museums in 2023, ranking among the most visited art museums in the world that year.