Impacts of small‐scale surface irregularities, or surface roughness, of atmospheric ice crystals on lidar backscattering properties are quantified. Geometric ice crystal models with various degrees of surface roughness and state‐of‐the‐science light‐scattering computational capabilities are utilized to simulate the single‐scattering properties across the entire practical size parameter range. The simulated bulk lidar and depolarization ratios of polydisperse ice crystals at wavelength 532 nm are strongly sensitive to the degree of surface roughness. Comparisons of these quantities between the theoretical simulations and counterparts inferred from spaceborne lidar observations for cold cirrus clouds suggest a typical surface‐roughness‐degree range of 0.03–0.15 in the cases of compact hexagonal ice crystals, which is most consistent with direct measurements of scanning electron microscopic images. To properly interpret lidar backscattering observations of ice clouds, it is necessary to account for the degree of surface roughness in light‐scattering computations involving ice crystals. Plain Language Summary Lidar (Light Detection and Ranging) instruments on satellites use reflected, or backscattered, laser beams to investigate ice clouds in the atmosphere. However, it has long been a challenge to interpret lidar signals, called backscattering properties, to infer ice cloud characteristics accurately. This study uses theoretical simulations to investigate how small‐scale surface irregularities of ice crystals affect the lidar signals associated with ice clouds. These simulations demonstrate the significant impacts of small‐scale surface irregularities of ice crystals on backscattering. Based on comparisons between the theoretical simulations and satellite lidar observations, it is necessary to assume a moderate degree of small‐scale surface irregularities to explain lidar observations of typical ice clouds. Key Points The sensitivity of the backscattering properties to the surface roughness of atmospheric ice crystals is theoretically investigated The depolarization ratio is substantially sensitive to the degree of surface roughness of ice crystals Compact hexagonal ice models with degrees of surface roughness ranging 0.03–0.15 reasonably explain the Cloud‐Aerosol Lidar with Orthogonal Polarization backscattering signals