Seattle Children's Museum

What Seattle Children's Museum does

Seattle Children's Museum is a private nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization (legal name: The Children's Museum; DBA: Seattle Children's Museum; tax ID 91-1112778) founded in 1980 and operated from a single 18,000-square-foot facility on the Ground Level of the Armory building at Seattle Center, 305 Harrison Street, Seattle, WA. Its core offering is 12 distinct hands-on interactive exhibits (including Bijou Theatre, COG City, Discovery Bay, Dunn Lumber Construction Zone, Eye Clinic, Global Village, Imagination Studio, The Market, The Mountain, Post Office, Sound Transit, and Tribal Tales) designed for children from birth to age 8, complemented by daily educator-led programs, monthly themed programming, and special events. The Tribal Tales exhibit was developed in direct collaboration with Pacific Northwest tribal artists, and several exhibits are co-developed with regional sponsors (Dunn Lumber, Sound Transit, Optometric Physicians of Washington, Luxottica).

The museum operates a multi-stream revenue model combining daily admission ($10-$12 per person with discounts for seniors, military, and last-hour entry; free for infants under 12 months), three-tier annual memberships ($35 Access for All, $95 Base, $185 Flex), group/field trip bookings at $9 per person for pre-booked parties of 10+, Discovery Days camps ($40 half-day, $80 full-day for ages 4-10), birthday party and after-hours facility rentals ($225-$500), and donations/grants from individuals and corporate sponsors including Microsoft, Amazon, BECU, Deloitte, and McKinstry. The Passport 2 Play outreach program extends subsidized or free admission to families in King, Pierce, Snohomish, and Kitsap counties through EBT/DSHS cardholders and community partners.

The museum was temporarily closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic beginning in 2020 and remained closed as of July 2021, citing financial impacts and the fact that the under-12 target audience was not yet vaccinated. It targets reopening in Q1 2022 under a "2022 Restart" repositioning that articulates a vision of being "The Children's Museum FOR Seattle," with memberships paused in 2020 to be extended upon reopening. Governance is provided by a Board of Trustees chaired by Andrew Mathews, with Tim Nicholson serving as Director of Operations overseeing day-to-day operations.

Name

Seattle Children's Museum

Legal name

The Children's Museum

Website

https://thechildrensmuseum.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1980

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Seattle Children's Museum is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) operating an 18,000 sq ft hands-on exhibit facility at Seattle Center for children from birth to age 8 and their families, funded by admissions, memberships, camps, rentals, and corporate donations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Children's Museum and Informal Early Childhood Education

NAICS

Museums (71211), Museums (712110), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (7121)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900), Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)

akta.pro primary industry

Children’s Museums (THAJADAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Museums & Heritage Sites (History, Science, Specialty) (BPAGAHAA), Arts & Design Camps (Visual Arts, Crafts, Design Thinking) (EDAMALAH), Kids & Family Learning Workshops (Family Crafts, Junior Maker Classes) (THAJAKAO)

Keywords

• Children's museum
• Interactive exhibits
• Early childhood education
• Hands-on learning
• Family programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Seattle

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Admission Fees: Daily admission fees charged per person with tiered pricing for children, adults, seniors, military, and free admission for infants under 12 months
2. Memberships: Annual memberships with Base ($95), Flex ($185), and Access for All ($35) tiers providing unlimited daily access and member-only events
3. Birthday Parties and Facility Rentals: Rental revenue from birthday party packages ($225-$500) and private facility rentals for corporate events, fundraisers, and meetings
4. Camp Programs: Discovery Days camps for ages 4-10 with full-day ($80) and half-day ($40) options, including sibling and multi-session discounts
5. Donations and Grants: Charitable contributions from individuals, corporate sponsors, workplace giving programs, and foundation grants. Tax ID: 91-1112778

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Seattle Children's Museum operates a single physical location offering 18,000 square feet of hands-on, open-ended interactive exhibits and educator-led programs for children from birth to age 8 and their families. Earned revenue comes primarily from daily admissions, annual memberships, Discovery Days camps for ages 4-10, birthday party packages, school and daycare group visits, and private facility rentals. Philanthropic support through individual donations, corporate sponsorships, and foundation grants supplements earned revenue. The museum's signature exhibit content includes STEM-focused COG City and the Tribal Tales exhibit developed in collaboration with Pacific Northwest tribal artists.

Product overview

Seattle Children's Museum operates as a single-location children's museum offering interactive exhibits and educational programs for children from birth to age 8. The museum's portfolio includes 12 distinct exhibits (Bijou Theatre, COG City, Discovery Bay, Dunn Lumber Construction Zone, Eye Clinic, Global Village, Imagination Studio, The Market, The Mountain, Post Office, Sound Transit, and Tribal Tales), core admission and membership products (Daily Admission, Base Membership, Flex Membership, Access for All Membership), Discovery Days Camp programs, birthday party packages (The Bash, After Hours Party), group visit/field trip services, facility rentals, and the Passport 2 Play outreach program for underserved families. These offerings are unified under the museum's mission to foster playful, hands-on learning and are designed for family engagement with caregivers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Daily Museum Admission All-day admission to the museum's 18,000 square feet of interactive exhibits for children and adults, with in-and-out privileges throughout the day. Tiered pricing applies for children ($12), adults ($12), seniors ($10), military ($10), and free for infants under 12 months.
• Base Membership Annual membership including one named adult and one named child, with additional family members available for $20 each. Provides unlimited daily access and member-only events for one year from purchase.
• Flex Membership Annual membership including one adult, one child, and one flexible guest slot allowing different guests each visit. Provides unlimited daily access for one year from purchase.
• Access for All Membership Reduced-cost annual membership ($35/year) available for families with EBT or WA DSHS cards, purchased in person. Provides affordable access to the museum's exhibits and programs.
• Discovery Days Camp Day camps for children ages 4-10 with themed programming including science, art, and cultural activities. Full-day option ($80, 9am-4pm) and half-day option ($40, AM or PM) with sibling, multi-session, and member discounts.
• Birthday Parties (The Bash) Hosted birthday party package priced $225-$375 including 2-hour use of themed party room, all-day admission for guests, and museum staff cleanup. 10% discount for members.
• After Hours Party Private after-hours museum rental ($500) from 5:30PM-7:30PM for up to 75 guests with exclusive access to all exhibits and buffet area.
• Group Visits and Field Trips Pre-booked group admissions for schools, daycares, and organizations of 10 or more visitors at $9 per person, including all-day admission, exhibit access, and orientation. Subsidized admission available for qualifying organizations serving at-risk children.
• Facility Rentals Private event rentals of the museum's 22,000 square foot space for birthday parties, corporate functions, fundraisers, meetings, and receptions.
• Passport 2 Play Community Access Program Need-based admission program providing free or reduced-cost museum access for at-risk families across King, Pierce, Snohomish, and Kitsap counties through EBT cards ($2/person), DSHS cards, community partner coupons, and subsidized group visits.
• Daily Calendar Programs Daily educator-led programs and activities integrated into the exhibits, including story times, plays, and age-specific sessions for children from birth to age 8, included with admission.

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Dunn LumbercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDunn Lumber sponsors the Construction Zone exhibit, providing materials and expertise for the building-themed interactive space where children can engage in construction play activities.
• Sound TransitcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSound Transit partners on the Sound Transit exhibit, helping teach children about public transportation through interactive train and station play experiences.
• Optometric Physicians of WashingtonminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSponsors the Eye Clinic exhibit to help children become comfortable with eye doctor visits and learn about eye health and safety.
• Healthy Eyes Healthy PeopleminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-sponsor of the Eye Clinic exhibit promoting eye health education for children.
• LuxotticaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSponsor of the Eye Clinic exhibit providing eyewear display and glasses for the pretend shopping experience.
• Pacific Northwest Tribal ArtistscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDirect collaboration with native artists from Pacific Northwest tribes to develop the Tribal Tales exhibit, exploring cultural universality of storytelling through Indigenous art and culture curated by the artists themselves.
• Franklin InstituteminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership through Leap into Science program, bringing science concepts to life through stories and inquiry-based challenges for preschoolers and pre-K children.
• 4CultureminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for Calendar Fun Days programming, supporting cultural and educational events at the museum.
• Space Needle LLCminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCorporate sponsor located nearby at Seattle Center, supporting the museum's mission.
• Seattle CentercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost institution providing location at Seattle Center Campus in the Armory building, enabling access to foot traffic and synergy with other Seattle Center attractions.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Bay Area Discovery Museum: Located in Sausalito, CA serving the Bay Area with hands-on exhibits focused on early childhood (under age 10). Comparable exhibit-led model, regional family demographic, and nonprofit revenue mix (admissions, memberships, donations, corporate sponsors).
• Please Touch Museum: Philadelphia-based children's museum focused on hands-on, play-based learning for children birth to age ~8. Closely comparable in target age range, exhibit philosophy (interactive, exploratory), and revenue model (admissions, memberships, birthday parties, field trips, donations).
• KidsQuest Children's Museum: Located in Bellevue, Washington—roughly 10 miles from Seattle Children's Museum. Serves the same Eastside/Puget Sound market of families with young children with hands-on exhibits, camps, and birthday party rentals. Most direct local competitor for the Greater Seattle metro area.
• Children's Museum of Houston: Major children's museum in Houston, TX serving families with young children through hands-on exhibits and educational programming. Comparable operating model including memberships, group visits, birthday parties, and outreach programs like Houston's "Museums for All" participation.
• Madison Children's Museum: Wisconsin-based children's museum focused on hands-on, play-based learning for young children with a similar scale of exhibits and programming. Comparable operating model including memberships, birthday parties, camps, and donor-supported exhibit development.
• Portland Children's Museum (formerly OMSI's Play World): A children's museum in nearby Portland, Oregon serving the same Pacific Northwest demographic of children birth to age ~10 with hands-on interactive exhibits. It is the closest geographic and operational analog to Seattle Children's Museum, competing for regional family visits and field trip bookings.

Broad incumbents

• Boston Children's Museum: One of the oldest and largest children's museums in the U.S., founded in 1913 and serving families with hands-on exhibits, school programs, and memberships. Directly comparable operating model—admissions, memberships, group visits, birthday parties, and donor-supported exhibits—at a larger scale.
• Children's Museum of Indianapolis: The largest children's museum in the world, operating at significantly greater scale than Seattle Children's Museum with much broader programming and resources. Comparable as a reference point for what scaled children's museum operations can achieve in admissions, memberships, and corporate partnerships.
• The Strong National Museum of Play: The Strong in Rochester, NY is a much larger museum dedicated to play and play-based learning for children and families. Comparable mission and audience, though it operates with significantly greater scale, broader age range, and a national reputation.

Regional players

• Hands On Children's Museum (Olympia): Children's museum in Olympia, WA—about 60 miles south of Seattle—serving young children with hands-on exhibits and education programs. Comparable mission and audience though smaller scale; not direct competitor due to geographic separation but operates within the same Pacific Northwest ecosystem.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ChildrensMusSea
• Facebookfacebook.com/ChildrensMusSEA
• Instagraminstagram.com/seattlechildrensmuseum

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Seattle Children's Museum