An algorithm is proposed in this paper for calculating the impulse earthing resistances of vertical earthing electrodes. The proposed algorithm employs the average potential method to derive the formula of the low current earthing resistance. Unlike the previous algorithm, the soil ionization effect under high impulse current is taken into account by introducing a nonlinear characteristic to represent the relationship between the electric field and current density in the ionization zone around the earthing electrode. On the basis of the nonlinear characteristic, the effective radius is evaluated for the equivalent earthing electrode. Then, the impulse earthing resistance can be calculated by substituting the effective radius into the formula of the low current earthing resistance. A comparison is also made between calculated and measured results to confirm the validity of the proposed algorithm. Keywords: Earthing Resistance; Vertical Earthing Electrode; Average Potential Integral; Soil Ionization; Current Density;