How are NBC’s New York City studios numbered?

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NBC operates numerous studios inside of its New York City headquarters.

In general, NBC’s studios are designated by a number followed by a letter.

The number represents the floor number of the space with a letter representing a sequential order. However, the letter pattern is not consistent, with some letters skipped, changed or eliminated over the years. In general, if a studio letter is eliminated, the rest of the studios are not re-lettered.

  • Studio 1A: Located across the street from 30 Rockefeller Center in 10 Rockefeller Center, this windowed, two story studio is home to NBC’s “Today.”
  • Studio 3A: Located in 30 Rock, Studio 3A is divided into two distinct spaces that share the 3A designator. One side, next to a small working newsroom space, is used mainly for MSNBC programming, while a separate area was primarily used for “NBC Nightly News” but now serves as home to “Ayman” and “Early Today.” Current shows that call the MSNBC side home include “Morning Joe,” “Deadline: White House” and “The 11th Hour.” In some cases, the former space occupied by “Nightly” is referred to as Studio 3AW (with “W” being for “west”).
  • Studio 3C: Studio 3C technically no longer exists, but was originally roughly on the side of Studio 3A that “Nightly News” occupied. It was previously home to WNBC and two previous “Nightly News” sets. Studios 3A and 3C were combined in a 2007 renovation that created a small studio for “Nightly” on the 3C side, with a large newsroom and studio for MSNBC on the 3A side. Studio 3C’s size was reduced during the construction before eventually being absorbed into 3A. MSNBC also briefly used the old WNBC set, with minor modifications, for election coverage. 3C also previously featured a “phone booth” glass-in studio used for William’s breaking news coverage on MSNBC. As mentioned, the space roughly known as Studio 3C is now sometimes referred to as Studio 3AW when it needs to be differentiated.
  • Studio 3B: Currently unused, this space was overhauled in 2011 to create a shared studio for “NBC Nightly News” and “Rock Center,” a newsmagazine show hosted by then “Nightly” anchor Brian Williams. After “Rock Center” was canceled in 2012, “Nightly” would eventually move into the “Rock Center” side of the studio. The original “Nightly” side of 3B incorporated much of the same design elements as the show’s old 3C set, including a video wall that could feed a video loop of the 3A newsroom, roughly in the same location as the real window in the old 3C. The space also was home to “Today” before it moved to 1A.
  • Studio 3K: Previously home to NBC Sports and a multipurpose MSNBC studio, this space is now home to WNBC newscasts. The “K” in the studio label was, according to NBC lore, originally meant to stand for “K”olor as the space was one of the first in the building to be equipped for color television (the 3C designator was taken). 3K was also used for virtual reality sets during the network’s past election coverage.
  • Studio 4E: This designated is for a large, open newsroom space on the fourth floor of 30 Rock. The “E” in the label stands for “East.” There is also a glass-in studio used for mainly for MSNBC programming, though the set design includes numerous NBC News references, making it possible to be used for NBC News special reports and coverage as well as select MSNBC shows as well as “Top Story” on NBC News Now. In some cases, the glass walls can be removed, opening the space to the newsroom.
  • Studio 6A: Currently unused. Formerly home to “Today Third Hour,” which replaced the canceled “Megyn Kelly Today.” The space, which includes audience risers, was previously home to “Maya and Marty” and “The Meredith Vieira Show.” “The Tonight Show” also used the space temporarily before moving to nearby 6B.
  • Studio 6B: Currently home to “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.” The space was previously used for WNBC newscasts, “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” and Johnny Carson’s version of “Tonight.”
  • Studio 6E: Home to NBC’s Global Media Insert Studios — sometimes known as the “news nooks.” This studio is technically sub-divided into smaller booth-like spaces each equipped with a desk or small lectern-style unit, camera and large video panel background. The spaces can be rented for simple video productions, with the screen behind the desk allowing producers to feed a background image of their choice behind the talent. The spaces are also commonly used for live remote interviews for stations and networks around the world — including some for other programs produced just floors away in the NBC building. The spaces are also sometimes used for holiday or weekend editions of NBC programming, such as “NBC Nightly News” and were also used heavily during the COVID-19 pandemic to reduce the need for full studio setups.
  • Studio 7E: This space originally featured a glass-in studio for NBC’s New York affiliate WNBC with an adjoining newsroom. Since WNBC moved to 3K, the old studio space has been converted to additional newsroom space for WNBC.
  • Studio 8G: Currently home to “Late Night with Seth Meyers,” the space was also used for the “Rosie O’Donnell Show.” NBC also built a two-part set for “Football Night in America” in the space, which, over the years, was used for election coverage and a temporary home for “NBC Nightly News” during the 2007 renovations of the third floor.
  • Studio 8H: One of the largest studios in the building, the space was originally a radio studio designed for the NBC Symphony Orchestra. It has served as home to “Last Call with Carson Daly” but is primarily used for “Saturday Night Live.” The space features floor seating for a studio audience as well as risers on the floor above. NBC often uses the space for offsite production needs for the Olympics. MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” sometimes uses the space for special editions after major political events.