At an all-way stop, order of arrival is the law: the first vehicle to come to a complete stop is the first to go. The tie-breaker is geometric: when two vehicles stop at the same time, the driver on the left yields to the driver on the right.
The rules assume complete stops, which is what makes them work: a rolling arrival has no defined place in the order. When in doubt, yield; right of way is something you give, and the intersection clears fastest when nobody insists on taking it.
The tested mistake is the simultaneous-arrival case: drivers wave each other on or both go. The rule already decided it, the vehicle on the right goes first, and the exam expects you to know it without the wave.
This situation appears in 2 questions across 2 of our state banks, on Driver License practice tests. Start with your state:
At a four-way stop, one driver clearly arrives before the others and stops completely. Who normally proceeds first?
Why: At a four-way stop, the driver who reaches the intersection first may go first after coming to a complete stop. Therefore, the supported response is "The first driver to reach and stop at the intersection".
Every practice test explains its answers this way. Pick your state and take one free; no sign-up.
Choose your stateThe vehicle that stopped first. Arrival order is the primary rule, which is why a complete stop matters: it timestamps your place in line.
The driver on the left yields to the driver on the right. In the illustrated scenario, the car to your right goes first and you follow.
The yield-to-the-right rule works around the intersection, usually starting with an exchange of eye contact and one driver committing. Move predictably and take your turn in order.
Arrival still governs, but a left-turning driver facing a simultaneous opposite arrival yields to the through vehicle, the same as at any intersection.
Because the rules only order the intersection when everyone applies them defensively. Insisting on a turn someone else is taking causes the crash the rules exist to prevent.