Econo Lodge is a budget motel chain based in the United States and Canada and one of the larger subsidiaries of Choice Hotels.

As of December 31, 2022[update], there are 759 Econo Lodge hotels open with 44,697 rooms.

Tarbutton took on the project, finding investors and money, as well as doing extensive market research, to see if the concept would work.

The chain's mascot in the early days was "Sandy", a girl in a short Scotch skirt and tam.

It was eventually acquired by a fund advised by investor Paul Wallace, who refurbished it, mended relations with franchisees, and then sold it to what is now Choice Hotels International in 1990.