I've been on Hubpages since 2012 and have been through some ups and downs with the site but now in 2017 they are definitely on the upswing. I have around 300 articles and make around $8,000 a year. HubPages has survived by focusing on quality and using editors to improve and standardize some of the content. HubPages has a really excellent writing platform which lets you include video, maps, tables and photos. In addition, HubPages has all of the content on one page so that the viewer looking at "10 Kitchen Design Tips" doesn't have to scroll through 10 pages to see the content. HubPages is for dedicated writers who are willing to write excellent, interesting content that beats everything else on the web for that topic. It is not a personal blog or creative writing platform and it does not promise instant success or guaranteed income. However, if you know a lot about something and you know how to write clear explanations or instructions, you probably can use HubPages to build a business.
Thank you for your detailed review and helpful tips, Virginia!