AmadeusAmadeus
and other internet reservations sites (such as online travel agencies). Our CRS provides a data link to our franchised properties as well as to travel reservation systems such as Amadeus, Galileo, SAB
From the filings
HQ-led decisions
Econo Lodge
LodgingEcono Lodge's franchise agreement puts software purchasing under Choice Hotels' corporate control: every hotel must run the choiceADVANTAGE reservations system on Choice-specified Dell hardware, plus EMV-capable payment hardware. The system spans 599 hotels, all franchised, across a Choice Hotels portfolio that also includes Radisson and Clarion Hotels.
For software vendors selling into US franchise brands.
Live signals
Total units
599
599 franchised
Unit growth YoY
-6.843%
vs prior filing
AUV
—
Item 19, 2026
Royalty
5%
of gross sales
Ad fund
3.5%
national + local
Initial fee
—
per unit
Investment range
$195K–$1.11M
all-in, Item 7
Procurement
—
from the filing
Item 19
Claims
from the filing
Ongoing fee load
What the operator pays every month
The recurring percentage of gross sales named in this filing, before rent, labour or any technology fee.
8.5%of gross sales (FY2026)
15% reference
Mandated & recommended tech
The systems vendors compete with
Systems named in Item 11 of this filing. None is recorded as mandated here, which is not the same as the filing mandating nothing. Read Item 11 before treating the category as open.
GalileoTravelport
r internet reservations sites (such as online travel agencies). Our CRS provides a data link to our franchised properties as well as to travel reservation systems such as Amadeus, Galileo, SABRE and W
SabreSabre
t reservations sites (such as online travel agencies). Our CRS provides a data link to our franchised properties as well as to travel reservation systems such as Amadeus, Galileo, SABRE and Worldspan
Shift4Shift4
tem is only available from Shift4 Payments, a Nevada corporation, with a business address at 1491 Center Crossing Road, Las Vegas, Nevada 89144. You will make payments directly to Shift4. Shift4 is a
SkyTouchSkyTouch
subsidiary of Choice. As of December 31, 2025, there were approximately 1,388 Choice franchised hotels operating in these various countries. In 2013, we established a subsidiary, SkyTouch Solutions, L
TripAdvisorTripAdvisor
res that you allow Choice to publish and/or retain your ResConnect program number on Digital Channels as designated by Choice, such as but not limited to Choicehotels.com, Google, Tripadvisor, and Bin
WorldspanTravelport
ions sites (such as online travel agencies). Our CRS provides a data link to our franchised properties as well as to travel reservation systems such as Amadeus, Galileo, SABRE and Worldspan that facil
Franchisor behaviours
What the franchisor requires
19 requirements the franchisor states in this filing, each in its own words; 5 explicit no's; 10 questions the text does not settle, which is not a no.
Accounting
Does the franchisor have direct or independent electronic access to the franchisee's financial, sales or customer records?
YesItem 11
We will have independent access to the information that will be generated by the choiceADVANTAGE® property management system and will use the information and data to identify trends, as well as to perform statistical analysis for improvement of the brand standards, as well as the overall Choice franchise system.
Must the franchisee submit periodic financial statements (monthly, quarterly or annual) to the franchisor?
YesFranchise agreement
month during the Term, you will send us a statement on a form to be determined by us showing the Gross Room Revenues, occupancy and other related information that we request for the immediately preceding month
How the franchisor buys
Is the franchisor or an affiliate itself a supplier of required products, services or systems?
YesItem 9
We reserve the right to require you to purchase any or all approved products or services solely from us or our designated affiliate, and who may profit from such purchases.
Is there a franchisee advisory council, association or committee?
YesItem 11
Currently, the Econo Lodge Franchisee Association, the Choice Hotels Owners Council and the Rodeway Owners’ Association administer 13 voluntary regional marketing cooperatives (“Marketing Cooperatives”), which we support.
Does the franchisor reserve the right to change designated suppliers or systems at any time?
YesItem 9
Choice reserves the right to update, modify, replace, terminate or otherwise change, at any time and in our sole
Does the franchisor or an affiliate receive rebates, commissions or other revenue from designated or approved suppliers?
YesItem 8
The Company generates revenue from qualified vendors.
Can a franchisee propose a new supplier for the franchisor's approval?
YesItem 9
If you desire to purchase designated products or services from a party other than a Qualified Vendor, you must submit to us a written request to approve the proposed supplier, together with such information as we may reasonably require.
Data and IT
Must the franchisee comply with PCI, data-security or cybersecurity standards set by the franchisor?
YesItem 9
You also acknowledge and agree that you are obligated to comply with all information security and data privacy standards and requirements contained in the Rules and Regulations and all applicable federal and state laws, regulations, and standards relating to information security and data privacy, including, without…
Franchise management
Does the franchisor conduct periodic inspections, audits or evaluations of the franchised business?
YesFranchise agreement
Quality Assurance. Administer quality assurance programs as described in the Rules and Regulations that may include periodic visits to the Hotel (by us or authorized third parties) and/or guest satisfaction surveys and guest reviews to evaluate your compliance with this Agreement and the Rules and Regulations and…
Can the franchisor change the operations manual and brand standards unilaterally?
YesItem 11
We may periodically revise, add to or update brand standards and other requirements by issuing revisions to the Rules and Regulations and other manuals that we may publish.
Must the franchisor approve the franchisee's site or location before opening?
YesItem 11
We must approve the site you select.
Marketing
Must the franchisee participate in a customer loyalty or rewards program?
YesFranchise agreement
Participate in and honor the terms of any loyalty, discount or promotional program and pay all applicable fees or charges associated with such programs
Operations
Must the franchisee buy products from a designated distributor?
YesItem 9
You must also purchase all products and services that we designate in the Rules and Regulations solely from suppliers (including manufacturers, distributors and other sources) approved by us (collectively, “Qualified Vendors”)
Must equipment be purchased from designated or approved suppliers?
YesItem 9
You must also purchase all products and services that we designate in the Rules and Regulations solely from suppliers (including manufacturers, distributors and other sources) approved by us (collectively, “Qualified Vendors”)
Payments
Are royalties and other fees collected by automatic bank debit (ACH or electronic funds transfer) from the franchisee's account?
YesItem 9
You are required to pay all amounts due to us and/or our affiliates by electronic fund transfer, pre-authorized auto-draft arrangement (“EFT”), or such other method as we may specify from time to time.
Must the franchisee participate in a gift card program?
YesFranchise agreement
Participate in and honor the terms of any loyalty, discount or promotional program and pay all applicable fees or charges associated with such programs (including any room discounts, rewards programs, frequent traveler programs, photographic or virtual tour programs or gift card programs that are applicable to the…
People
Does the franchisor require minimum staffing levels or specific roles?
YesItem 11
You must have a certified General Manager at your hotel.
Training
Can the franchisor charge the franchisee for additional, refresher or remedial training?
YesItem 11
We reserve the right to charge you a tuition fee for these additional training programs as established by us from time to time.
Is attendance at an annual convention or conference mandatory for the franchisee?
YesItem 11
You must comply with our training requirements by ensuring that you and the Hotel’s general manager(s) attend (at the times required by us) our then-current training programs, including our annual national convention for hotels authorized to use the System.
The filing answers no to 5 questions
- Must the franchisee participate in a customer-satisfaction or net-promoter survey program?Item 9
- Is the franchisee prohibited from operating its own website or social media accounts, or required to use pages the franchisor provides?Item 11
- Is a minimum grand opening advertising spend required?Franchise agreement
- Is the franchisee required to spend a minimum amount on local advertising or marketing, as a percentage of sales or a fixed amount?Item 11
- Must the franchisee participate in a regional advertising cooperative when one exists?Item 11
The vendor opportunity at Econo Lodge
Econo Lodge operates 599 hotels, all franchised, inside Choice Hotels' multi-brand portfolio, which also includes Radisson, Radisson Collection, MainStay, Park Inn, and Clarion Hotels. Item 19 of the FDD includes a financial performance representation. A brand-wide, HQ-mandated technology stack across nearly 600 properties gives a vendor one procurement conversation to win instead of hundreds.
Who controls software purchasing
Choice Hotels' headquarters controls software purchasing for Econo Lodge. CEO and President Patrick S. Pacious leads the organization; its officers also include Chief Global Brand Officer Dominic E. Dragisich, Chief Development Officer David A. Pepper, Chief Strategy Officer and Senior Vice President, Technology Anna Scozzafava, Chief Information Officer Brian Kirkland, and Chief Financial Officer Scott E. Oaksmith.
Tech named in the FDD, and what is actually required
Econo Lodge hotels are required to install a dedicated, wired, business-grade internet connection at the front desk to run choiceADVANTAGE, Choice's reservations system, and to refresh that system with Dell hardware and peripherals meeting Choice's specifications, purchased through preferred hardware vendor Insight or as part of Brand in a Box. Choice also requires chip-enabled (EMV) credit card hardware, and hotels must use Choice's central reservation system (CRS). Beyond those requirements, the FDD names Amadeus, Galileo, Sabre, and Worldspan (travel reservation systems, Item 5), Sage 50 (Item 2), Shift4 (Item 11), SkyTouch (Item 1), and TripAdvisor (Item 9).
Procurement, renewals, and timing
Item 8 of the FDD sets Econo Lodge's rules for where franchisees buy goods, services, and technology; the embedded filing below carries the specifics. The royalty runs 5.0% of Gross Room Revenues, and franchised outlets fell 6.843% year over year — a decline that points to existing-unit churn and re-contracting rather than a wave of new-hotel technology setups.
How to read the Econo Lodge FDD
The embedded viewer below carries Econo Lodge's 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document in full, including the Item 11 technology language summarized above.
Talk to FranCloud for a ranked list of franchise systems like Econo Lodge where the technology mandate and unit economics line up with your product.
Questions vendors ask
Econo Lodge, answered from the filing
Choice Hotels' corporate office in Maryland sets the required choiceADVANTAGE reservations system and hardware standards. CEO Patrick S. Pacious and Chief Global Brand Officer Dominic E. Dragisich sit atop that decision chain; vendors should approach Choice Hotels' brand and technology teams rather than individual franchisees.
Item 11 requires the choiceADVANTAGE reservations system, Dell hardware (through preferred vendor Insight or as part of Brand in a Box), and EMV chip-enabled credit card hardware. The FDD also names Amadeus, Galileo, Sabre, and Worldspan, Sage 50, Shift4, SkyTouch, and TripAdvisor.
599 total units, all 599 franchised and none company-owned, in the lodging segment.
Item 8 of the FDD sets Econo Lodge's rules for where franchisees buy goods, services, and technology; see the embedded filing below for the specifics.
Franchised outlets fell 6.843% year over year, a churn signal worth tracking for technology re-contracting as units change hands, alongside the 5.0% royalty on Gross Room Revenues.
The embedded PDF viewer below carries Econo Lodge's 2026 Franchise Disclosure Document.
Source
Read the filing itself
Every number on this page traces back to this document. Read it in full, page by page. Buy the original PDF to download, search, and annotate it.
View only A one-time purchase: the original filing, yours to keep.
FDD alert
Tell me when this brand refiles.
We’ll email you the moment Econo Lodge files a new annual FDD, usually the freshest signal of a vendor change.
Operator footprint
Who runs the locations
510 operators run 538 mapped locations. 18 of them are multi-unit. Aggregate counts from the filing; no names.
Operators by units owned
Single-unit492
2–9 units18
Ownership
The portfolio behind Econo Lodge
strategic_multibrand of Choice Hotels.
Sibling brands
Related Lodging brands
Primary franchise filings · updated September 2026. Every figure is source-traceable and QA-checked.