We present simulations performed with six lightning parameterizations implemented in the Community Atmosphere Model (CAM5). The amount of lightning‐produced nitrogen oxides (LNO _x ) by the various schemes considered is estimated. We provide some insight on how the lightning NO injected in the atmosphere influences the global concentrations of key chemical species such as OH, HO₂, H₂O₂, NO _x , O₃, SO₂, CO, and HNO₃. The vertical global averaged densities of HO₂, H₂O₂, CO, and SO₂ are depleted due to lightning while those of NO, NO₂, O₃, OH, and HNO₃ increase. Our results indicate that the parameterizations based on the upward ice flux (ICEFLUX) exhibit the largest global and midlatitude spatial correlations (0.73 and 0.632 for ICEFLUX and 0.72 and 0.553 for cloud top height) with respect to satellite global flash rate observations. Five out of the six lightning schemes investigated exhibit larger LNO _x per flash in the midlatitudes than in the tropics. In particular, it is found that the ICEFLUX midlatitude LNO _x per flash exhibits the largest difference with respect to its predicted tropical LNO _x per flash, in agreement with available observations. When using CAM5, the ICEFLUX lightning parameterization could be considered a reliable lightning scheme (within its intrinsic uncertainties) in terms of its geographical distribution. Both ICEFLUX and cloud top height results agree with the enhancements of NO₂ and O₃ produced by lightning over tropical Atlantic and Africa and the weaker lightning background over the tropical Pacific reported by Martin et al. (2007) in the periods and locations (upper troposphere) where lightning is expected to dominate the trace gas observations.