Abstract We have studied the structural an electronic properties of ZrN using the Full Potential Linearized Augmented Plane Waves (FPLAPW) method. Four different crystal structures were considered in our study: cubic NaCl, cubic CsCl, wurtzite and zincblende. Rocksalt is the calculated ground state structure, but our calculations predict a phase transformation from NaCl to a CsCl structure at high pressure. (© 2006 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)