When Is Hoda Kotb's Last Day on “Today”? Why the Longtime Host Is Saying Goodbye to the Morning Show — and What She's Doing Next

After a nearly 18-year run on the Today show, Hoda Kotb is stepping away from the news desk.

Kotb announced her departure from the NBC morning show on Sept. 26, 2024, by penning a letter to the cast and crew. A source told PEOPLE that the news came as a "complete surprise" to most people at Today — aside from Kotb's closest co-workers.

"I know I’m making the right decision, but it’s a painful one. And you all are the reason why. I love you and it’s time for me to leave the show," she wrote, explaining that her daughters Haley Joy and Hope Catherine "deserve a bigger slice of my time pie."

Kotb has co-anchored Today's 7 a.m. and 8 a.m. time slots alongside Savannah Guthrie since 2018 and hosted Today's fourth hour at 10 a.m. since 2007 (Jenna Bush Hager joined her in 2019, following Kathie Lee Gifford's exit).

Following her last day on Friday, Jan. 10, NBC newscaster Craig Melvin will step in as Guthrie's permanent co-anchor. Meanwhile, Bush Hager will be "dating" new co-hosts on the rebranded Today with Jenna & Friends, per NBC.

Here's everything to know about Hoda Kotb's departure from Today, including why she's saying goodbye to the morning show and what's next for her career.

How long has Hoda Kotb been on the Today show?

Hoda Kotb began her journalism career at NBC in 1998, when she was hired as a Dateline correspondent and reporter. The TV broadcaster pivoted away from covering major world events in September 2007 when she joined Today as host of the show's fourth-hour slot at 10 a.m.

In April 2008, she was joined by co-host Kathie Lee Gifford, and the pair worked together for over a decade. Upon Gifford's departure from Today, Jenna Bush Hager stepped in as co-host in April 2019.

Kotb was eventually named co-anchor of Today's 7 a.m. and 8 a.m. slots alongside Savannah Guthrie in January 2018, a few months after Matt Lauer was fired from the show amid allegations of sexual misconduct. Kotb and Guthrie's pairing was historical as there had never been an all-female anchor team on network television.

"We asked Hoda to step in in the interim, and our thoughts were, 'Okay we’re going to need a man, who will it be?' " Guthrie recalled to PEOPLE in October 2024. "But then it dawned on all of us that this was the most obvious, most sensible and best choice."

She added, "The most exciting thing was, audiences not only embraced it, it never even became a thing. People were ready for this."

While Kotb and Guthrie are the main faces of Today's first two hours, they are often joined by other NBC hosts, including Craig Melvin, Al Roker and Carson Daly.

Why is Hoda Kotb leaving the Today show?

Kotb is leaving the Today show to spend more time with her kids, Haley Joy and Hope Catherine, whom she adopted in 2017 and 2019, respectively. She shares her daughters with ex-fiancé Joel Schiffman.

The TV personality announced her departure from the morning show in September 2024 — shortly after turning 60. Kotb's milestone birthday made her reevaluate her priorities as a mother, according to the broadcast journalist.

“I knew that I wanted this decade to be different. I looked at my time like a pie. I was like, this is how much time I get, and now what am I going to do with it and how am I going to carve it up? And I wanted it to be filled with more of them," she told PEOPLE, referring to Haley and Hope.

Kotb continued, "There’s the guilt you carry because you can't be 100% at work and 100% at home. Something has to give if you want excellence. If you're going to be excellent at work, something has to give at home. And if you want to be excellent at home, I mean excellent, and do all the things, something has to give at work. It can't be equal."

In October 2024, Kotb admitted that the decision to leave Today was "terrifying" but also "exactly right" for her family. She later told Seth Meyers that she "will not miss" waking up at 3 a.m. for work to be on the air by 7 a.m.

When is Hoda Kotb’s last day on Today?

Friday, Jan. 10 will mark Kotb's last day on the Today show, and the NBC morning show has dubbed the week leading up to her departure as a "Hoda-bration."

The "fun, laughs and surprises" kicked off on Jan. 6 when Kotb was reunited with 70 of her former Tri Delta sorority sisters from Virginia Tech. She was also gifted a personalized painting by one of her favorite authors, Charlie Mackesy.

Who is replacing Hoda Kotb on the Today show?

Craig Melvin will replace Kotb as co-anchor of the Today show alongside Guthrie beginning Jan. 13. He already hosts the third hour of the NBC morning show with Roker, Sheinelle Jones and Dylan Dreyer.

"You are made for this job," Kotb said to Melvin during the on-air announcement in November 2024. "You are literally made for this job. You are that kind of good. You have all the things that this job needs. You're the right person for it."

In preparation for Kotb's exit, NBC has rebranded the Today show's fourth hour. It will now be called Today with Jenna & Friends, and Bush Hager will have a revolving cast of guest co-hosts until a permanent co-host is named.

Taraji P. Henson, Keke Palmer and Eva Longoria will be the first "friends" to appear on the show.

What is Hoda Kotb going to do next?

Kotb is leaning into wellness in her next chapter. While speaking to PEOPLE in October 2024, the broadcaster revealed that she has plans to launch a wellness app and host retreats.

"I think it would be, number one, fun, and number two, helpful," she said of the project still in its early stages. "It is something that I'm excited about exploring."

She's also ready to fully embrace life with her daughters in the suburbs of New York. The family moved out of the city in late 2024, something Kotb told PEOPLE wasn't an easy choice.

"I want my kids to feel grass on their feet, and play in the yard, and ride bikes down the street, and run up and down the stairs," she explained. "I just see that life for them in this perfect house in this beautiful little town where I know they'll be able to blossom into beautiful, independent, strong women."

Kotb's daily routine will also look drastically different now that she doesn't have to wake up at 3 a.m. for her anchoring job.

"I'm sleeping in," she told PEOPLE when asked what her first day off will look like. "I'm going to go to a 5:30 SoulCycle. I'm going to feed my kids breakfast. I'm going to get a hot cup of coffee. I am going to walk with them to school, which is going to be one of the most amazing things. Small, but amazing."

Read the original article on People