Abstract The effects of nanosecond discharge on ignition characteristics of a stoichiometric methane–air mixture without inert diluent gas were studied by numerical simulation at 0.1 MPa and an initial temperature of 1300 K. A modified non-equilibrium plasma kinetic model was developed to simulate the temporal evolution of particles produced during nanosecond discharge and its afterglow. As important roles in ignition, path fluxes of O and H radicals were analyzed in detail. Different strength of E / N and different discharge duration were applied to the discharge process in this study. And the results presented that a deposited energy of 1–30 mJ·cm − 3 could dramatically reduce the ignition delay time. Furthermore, temperature and radicals analysis was conducted to investigate the effect of non-equilibrium plasma on production of intermediate radicals. Finally, sensitivity analysis was employed to have further understanding on ignition chemistries of the mixture under nanosecond discharge.