An intertidal marine benthic algal vegetation and vertical distribution at Youngil Bay, the eastern coast of Korea was investigated to clarify the community structure and vertical distribution by quadrat method from February 2003 to January 2009. Marine algae identified from the area were 152 species; 25 green, 38 brown and 89 red algae. The dominant species were Ulva spp., Ulva pertusa, Chaetomorpha moniligera, Undaria pinnatifida, Sargassum horneri, S. miyabei, S. thunbergii, Gelidium amansii, Corallina pilulifera, Grateloupia elliptica, G. filicina, Prionitis cornea, Chondrus ocellatus, Chondracanthus intermedia, Acrosorium polyneurum, Chondria crassicaulis, Polysiphonia morrowii and Symphyocladia latiuscula at study sites. The vertical distribution of intertidal marine algae was divided into three distinct zones. They were characterized by Porphyra spp. and Ulva spp. at the upper, Ulva spp. and Ulva pertusa at the middle, and Sargassum spp., Gelidium amansii, Grateloupia spp., Chondrus ocellatus and Chondria crassicaulis at the lower zones, respectively. Functional form group analysis showed that coarsely branched forms comprised 44.7% of the algal community, whereas thick leathery forms, sheet forms and filamentous forms comprised 6.6-25.7%. R/P, C/P and (R+C)/P values were 2.34, 0.66 and 3.00, respectively.