first come first served
Earliest gets it
First come first served describes allocation based on order of arrival—whoever shows up or requests something earliest gets priority.
The principle governs queues, limited offers, and scarce resources: Seating is first come first served, Tickets are available on a first come first served basis.
Sometimes hyphenated when used as a modifier: first-come-first-served seating.
- FIFOEarliest in, earliest out
- sequentiallyIn ordered succession
- open seatingUnreserved seat arrangement
- turn-takingAlternating speaker roles
- fairnessJust and equal treatment
general admission · queue · waiting in line · take a number · next in line · equity · precedence · walk-in · chronology · lineup · wait your turn · turn · priority · early bird · sequencing · reservation · allocation · timing
- social codessocial norms, social norm, unwritten rule, unspoken rule, unspoken rules
- allocation methodslottery, quota, rationing, merit-based, need-based
- queuesqueue, waiting line, lineup, waiting list, wait list
- Waitlist Termsqueue, standby, waiting, waitlist, reservations
- access rulesno entry, restricted area, authorized only, staff only, VIP only
- admissionsapplication, acceptance letter, admissions, application deadline, admissions committee
first come first servedlottery
Randomized prize distribution
random selection · by appointment · reservation system · auction · priority seating
first come first servedcronyism
Favoring friends in appointments
old boys' network · exclusive access · luck of the draw · nepotism · pull strings
first, serve, served, comes, coming, serves, server, service