Ever find yourself watching the news and wondering how the person behind the desk seems to have been around forever, yet somehow still looks like they just finished a morning workout? That’s basically the vibe with Tom Llamas.
If you’ve been Googling how old is tom llamas, you’re definitely not the only one. Since he took over the legendary anchor chair from Lester Holt in June 2025, the curiosity has only spiked. Honestly, it's a fair question. The guy has a resume that looks like he’s been in the game for forty years, but he’s actually much younger than his "Managing Editor" title might suggest.
The Short Answer: Tom Llamas’ Current Age
Let’s get the numbers out of the way first. Tom Llamas is 46 years old. He was born on July 2, 1979. This means he’ll be hitting the big 4-7 in the summer of 2026.
If you do the math, it’s kinda wild. He’s relatively young for someone holding the most prestigious job in broadcast journalism. To put it in perspective, when he officially became the permanent anchor of NBC Nightly News in 2025, he was just 45. While he wasn't the absolute youngest to ever do it—Peter Jennings famously started at ABC in his mid-twenties—Llamas is significantly younger than many of the titans who came before him. Lester Holt, for example, didn't snag the Managing Editor title until he was 56.
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Why Everyone Thinks He’s Older (or Younger)
The reason people get confused about his age usually boils down to his "grind." Tom didn't just walk into a network job yesterday. He’s been a fixture on our screens since the early 2000s.
He started as an intern for a Telemundo station at just 15 years old. Think about that. Most 15-year-olds are worried about learner's permits and geometry, and Tom was already in a newsroom. By the time he graduated from Loyola University New Orleans in 2001, he was already battle-tested.
- The Early Years: He spent time at WTVJ in Miami and WNBC in New York.
- The ABC Era: Many viewers remember him from his big stint at ABC News (2014–2021), where he anchored the weekend editions of World News Tonight.
- The NBC Return: He came back to the "Peacock" in 2021 to launch Top Story on NBC News NOW.
When you see someone covering wars, hurricanes, and presidential elections for over two decades, your brain naturally wants to add a few years to their birth certificate. On the flip side, he’s a massive fitness enthusiast—often talking about his morning workouts and meditation—which keeps him looking pretty youthful under those studio lights.
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A Life Built on the "Miami Hustle"
You can’t really talk about Tom Llamas without talking about Miami. He’s the son of Cuban immigrants who arrived in the U.S. as political refugees. That background is a huge part of his identity and, frankly, probably why he seems so seasoned. He grew up in a house where the news was always on—both in English and Spanish.
He’s often mentioned how his parents’ struggle and the "refugee mentality" fueled his work ethic. It explains why he’s currently pullng double duty. Even though he’s the face of NBC Nightly News at 6:30 p.m., he’s still anchoring Top Story on the streaming side right after. It’s a grueling schedule that would break most people, regardless of age.
Family Life Behind the Scenes
When he isn’t at 30 Rock, Tom is basically a suburban dad. He’s been married to his wife, Jennifer Llamas, since 2006. They met back in college at Loyola, which is a pretty cool "sweethearts" story for a high-profile couple.
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They have three kids: Malena (born 2013), Juliette (born 2015), and Tomas (born 2017).
If you follow him on Instagram, it’s not all teleprompters and suits. It’s mostly him coaching his son’s baseball team or talking about his daughter's gymnastics meets. He’s also a huge Yankees fan—a fact that he’s very vocal about, even if it ruffles some feathers in other MLB cities.
What’s Next for Tom Llamas?
The move to the main anchor desk in 2025 was a massive shift for NBC. By January 2026, the ratings showed that the gamble paid off. Nightly News has been hitting #1 in the key demographics, proving that a younger, "streaming-first" anchor can actually pull in the traditional broadcast audience too.
At 46, Llamas is likely at the very beginning of a very long tenure. If he stays in the chair as long as Lester Holt or Brian Williams did, we’ll be watching him well into the 2040s.
If you want to keep up with his career or see how he manages that crazy double-anchor schedule, the best way is to catch Top Story on NBC News NOW. It gives a much more "raw" look at his reporting style compared to the more polished 30-minute evening broadcast. You can also track his live reporting during major breaking news events, where his experience as a "Big Board" guy during election cycles really shines.